$100K H-1B visa fee disrupts Telugu graduates' career plans, marriages, faith

Economic Times India ^ | 10/13/2025 | Suraksha P, ETtech

[marcusmaximus]

A policy decision of American President Donald Trump has rattled the Telugu world. Many families across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana are battling a crisis of faith, careers, and marriages hinged to the H-1B visa.

Some estimates suggest that 10–15% of all H-1B visas are filled by applicants from the twin Telugu states, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. With Indians accounting for nearly 71% of total H-1B allocations, this translates into tens of thousands of young Telugu graduates, engineers, and tech professionals.

-snip-

For a regular Telugu family, an American education, job, and alludu (son-in-law) is a matter of pride. It's culturally ingrained.

The craze for an American sambandham (finding a groom settled in the US) is a cultural trope that is widely featured in Telugu movies and TV shows.

Matrimonial services and brokers who facilitate these connections have proliferated and now see a change in preferences for the desired spouse.

"Previously they would prefer brides from India but now they prefer women settled in the US to avoid visa problems. Brides' families in turn are looking for grooms with at least an approved form I-140, or a green card, or those with citizenship. After the Trump administration came in, even the futures of existing H1B visa holders are uncertain, so they don't want to complicate their situation with brides from India," said Janaki Jasti, relationship manager, Telugu Marriage Bureau, Hyderabad, adding that her firm has 3,000 NRI clients, and alternate preferred destinations abroad include Canada, Australia, and UK.

[politicket]

Would rather have their career plans, marriages, and faith disrupted instead of having them come to the US with their lying, cheating, and stealing.

Have worked with well over 1,000 of them over the years. Can count the ones that are "pretty good" on two hands. Took 35 years until I moved from one hand.

Virtually every single resume is a paper of lies.

[Skwor]

Don’t Care, America is closed.

American jobs for Americans

[hal ogen]

So?

Make India great again.

[Macoozie]

“tens of thousands of young Telugu graduates, engineers, and tech professionals”

Why don’t they go back and Make India Great Again?

Oh, yeah, because it’s a corrupt shiiiitehole country.

[central_va]

The American dream is for Americans get it globalist free traitors?

[central_va]

Thanks for posting this!

[Wuli]

I actually think Trump knew the $100,000 H1B fee would hit Indians most of all, and it is part of his chess game with Modi. He wants some things from Modi, and if Modi bends he’ll undo the H1B visa fee.

[Bon of Babble]

Sure they want this - then they can bring over their entire family - all 90 of them - b/c "family reunification."

They can still do all these wonderful things - find a marriage partner, get an education, career - in their own country!

This job-stealing program known as "H-1b Visa" needs not to be curtailed but ended.

How would they like it if Americans flooded into their country and took their jobs?

From this morning:

Major H-1B Visa Sponsor Will Not Hire a Single H-1B Applicant Going Forward

"The CEO of a tech company, Tata, that is one of the biggest H-1B visa sponsors in the U.S. said they would no longer be hiring applicants on the visa amid a Trump administration visa crackdown."

[escapefromboston]

Keep up the good work posting these stories about Indians.

[Night Hides Not]

I see the family members daily in my ‘burb. Grandma and grandpa are there to provide free childcare, and VERY few make any attempt to assimilate. Our school district is 65% Indian. However, education is stressed in that culture, a big reason why Coppell ISD ranks third in the state of Texas.

I suppose my home value would decline if H1Bs went home, but I don’t worry about it. North Texas adds 100K+ new residents every year.

[FrankRizzo890]

The horror, the horror.

[TECTopcat]

Yes H-1Bs from India fabricate their resumes and H-1Bs just lie about their abilities, my experience was the same as yours, way below average ability compared to any US graduate and below many admin’s ability on simple things like Excel, they also get their Indian buddies hired and make it extremely hard for any US citizen to get a job.

[dfwgator]

Stay in India and make India great.

[butlerweave]

India is one big garbage dump so maybe they could work in Waste Management

[kiryandil]

[Mr. Blond]

Imagine the Founding Fathers reading this story. “What in the name of Providence is a Telegu?”

[SharpRightTurn]

“A policy decision of American President Donald Trump has rattled the Telugu world.”

I don’t care how much they are “rattled.” I don’t want to see never ending numbers of foreigners admitted into the country just so that big corporations can have American employees train the cut-rate Indians and then fire the higher-paid American workers.

Thank you, Mr. President for being more concerned about American workers than “the Telugu world.”

America First.