Free Republic

The United States issued nearly one-fifth fewer student visas in August compared to the same month in 2024, following a crackdown by the Trump administration. A sharp decline in student visas for Indian nationals was the most significant contributor to this drop, with India overtaken by China as the leading source of foreign students. According to data from the International Trade Commission, the US issued 313,138 student visas in August, marking a 19.1% decrease year-over-year. India, which had been the top source of foreign students to the United States in 2024, saw a staggering 44.5% decline in student visa issuance....

Columbia University could face a substantial financial impact if the Trump administration’s proposed $100,000 fee on H-1B visas is implemented, as reported by the Columbia Spectator. The fee, announced in a White House proclamation on September 19, 2025, could cost the University up to $20 million annually, according to data from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). While current H-1B visa holders and renewals are not affected, new visa petitions filed after September 21 would be subject to the levy, placing additional strain on universities that rely heavily on international talent for research and teaching. New H-1B hires could...

“I have never seen anything like this in 30 years,” says Mrinalini Batra, a higher studies counsellor who has helped dozens of Indian students find their way into America’s most prestigious universities. Batra is referring to a slew of measures enacted by the US President Donald Trump administration in recent months, from time-limiting foreign student visas and hiking H1B visa fees to demanding a 15% cap on international students at US universities. Taken together, the measures seem to mark a concerted effort to restrict the number of foreign students entering America. -snip- “The US is just not an option for...

The notification pinged on smartphones across America on Friday, September 19, night. US President Donald Trump had signed a proclamation that would add a staggering $100,000 fee to H1B visa applications, sending shockwaves through the Indian Diaspora that forms the backbone of America's tech industry. For Priya and her husband Rajesh (names changed on request), the news arrived like a digital earthquake in their quiet suburban home. She, on an H4 dependent visa, watched helplessly as her husband -- an H1B holder with three years remaining on his current visa -- absorbed the implications of what seemed like a career-ending...

The number of Indians securing US student visas has witnessed a dramatic plunge, diving by over 44 per cent in August 2025, according to data released on Monday. This marks the steepest drop among all countries and signals a major shift in global student mobility trends, with China now surpassing India as the leading source of US student visas. The International Trade Commission reported that the US issued a total of 313,138 student visas in August — a critical month for university admissions — which reflects a 19.1 per cent decline compared to the previous year. India, which was the...

Chipmaker Nvidia's CEO Jensen Huang said that the company will continue to sponsor H-1B visas and cover all associated costs following U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order last month that imposed a $100,000 fee on each new application, Business Insider reported on Tuesday. Huang's reported message, aimed at reassuring employees, comes after panic and confusion had ensued among tech workers on H-1B visas, a large chunk of whom are from India and China. Akin to the wider chip and tech industry, Nvidia has a significant number of employees from overseas. Huang has repeatedly asserted that about half the AI researchers...

Manisha Puppala, an Indian national who recently graduated with a master’s degree in tech management from the Rochester Institute of Technology, planned to apply for an H-1B work visa to remain in the U.S. after her studies. Now that the Trump administration has announced a $100,000 fee for new H-1B applications, her future is in doubt. Puppala, who took on $120,000 in loans to study in America and has been working at a Boston firm on a permit that allows foreign students to work temporarily in the U.S., had dreamed of running her own startup. “What do I do now?”...

The Trump administration plans to publish a new H-1B rule expected to propose additional immigration restrictions on how employers use the visa and who qualifies for it. Shortly before the White House announced a $100,000 fee on many H-1B visa holders, the Department of Homeland Security published its regulatory agenda. The agenda includes a rule to change the H-1B visa category. The summary for the upcoming rule “Reforming the H-1B Nonimmigrant Visa Classification Program” states: “DHS will propose to reform the H-1B program by revising eligibility for cap exemptions, providing greater scrutiny for employers that have violated program requirements, and...

Tighter US immigration rules are making Indian families think twice before arranging marriages with relatives living in the United States, matchmakers and experts say. Sidhi Sharma, a 19-year-old medical student from Haryana, had hoped to marry an Indian citizen with a high-paying US job but abandoned the idea after recent headlines about President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.

When Qian Zhang boarded a flight from Shanghai to Boston at age 18, she thought she was heading toward the "best version" of her life. It was 2009, during President Barack Obama's first term, when the U.S. economy was rebounding and opportunities for well-educated workers seemed plentiful. She was bound for Dartmouth College, a top choice for many Chinese students, and later found her way to Harvard Business School. Qian embraced the American dream: the promise of equal opportunity, a country that rewards talent and hard work, and a place where global citizens like her could belong. By her early...

For decades, young Indians were told that success meant heading west. Wealth, global recognition, and a career on the international stage could only be earned by leaving home for the United States. Silicon Valley became the promised land, Wall Street the pinnacle of ambition, and the H1-B visa the golden ticket. Families built dreams around it, students tailored their education for it, and India’s brightest minds set their sights on crossing oceans. But now, that dream faces a harsh reality. President Donald Trump has imposed a staggering $100,000 fee on new H1-B visas, a barrier so steep it threatens to...

There’s been lots of discussion about which tech companies will be the biggest losers from President Donald Trump’s broad assault on H-1B visas for highly skilled foreign workers, including a $100,000 fee for each new visa recipient. But the impact could be felt first by universities, says Jeremy Neufeld, the director of immigration policy at the Institute for Progress, a nonpartisan Washington think tank. That's because the fee won’t apply to companies until next March, when the annual lottery for the roughly 85,000 new commercial H-1B visas awarded each year, takes place. Meanwhile, universities and certain other research and not-for-profit...

Kaushik Raj, a 27-year-old journalist from Delhi, was all ready to live his American dream with a $100,000 (approximately Rs 89 lakh) scholarship in hand to pursue a master's degree in data journalism at Columbia University. But all his plans came crashing down when the United States' immigration department denied his student visa. Raj, who completed all the visa formalities, including the interview, believes the rejection was linked to his social media activity. Under the Donald Trump administration, social media vetting has become an integral part of the visa selection process. Speaking to The Washington Post, Raj claimed he wasn't...

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Cognizant and eight other major corporations have been questioned by U.S. Senators for filing thousands of H-1B skilled labour visa petitions after conducting "mass layoffs" of American employees. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley and ranking member Richard Durbin have also questioned Amazon, Apple, Deloitte, Google, JPMorgan Chase, Meta, Microsoft, and Walmart, asking them for details on their hiring and recruitment practices as well as any variation in salary and benefits between H-1B visa holders and American employees. The Senators said their "inquiry" comes at a time when the unemployment rate in America’s tech sector is...

The number of international students arriving in the U.S. in August fell by 19 percent this year compared with last year — the largest decline on record outside of the pandemic. The decline is occurring as the Trump administration has delayed visa processing, instituted travel bans or restrictions for 19 countries, threatened to deport international students for pro-Palestinian speech, and heightened the vetting of student visa applicants. -snip- The United States hosts the most international students of any country: about 1.3 million doctorate, master’s, bachelor’s and associate students, according to recent government data. Over 70 percent are from Asia, and...

A heartfelt post by an Indian professional on Reddit has sparked a wave of emotional discussion among expats navigating the uncertainty of life after their US student visas expire. The user, who identified himself as a 32-year-old currently on a STEM OPT visa, opened up about feeling “lost” and conflicted as his time in the US nears an end. In his post, the user shared that he came to the US in 2021 on an F1 visa and had planned to continue working through a Day 1 CPT program after his Optional Practical Training (OPT) period. However, after his project...

The United States of America’s plan to cap international undergraduate students at 15 per cent per campus, with no more than 5 per cent from any single country, has caused unease among global students—especially in India, which sends one of the largest cohorts to American universities. What the White House proposal says Earlier this month, the White House sent a memo to nine universities outlining a proposal that ties federal funding to new conditions. These include limiting international undergraduate enrolment to 15 per cent overall and capping any single country at 5 per cent. The memo is not a universal...

For thousands of Indians who move to the United States in pursuit of education, career growth, and stability, the American dream often represents more than just financial success — it stands for freedom, opportunity, and personal achievement. But as immigration rules tighten and job markets fluctuate, many find that this dream can unravel overnight. The story of one 32-year-old Indian worker, who spent four years building a life in the US only to face sudden job loss and visa uncertainty, reveals how fragile this dream can be. The worker, who moved to the US in 2021 on an F1 student...

For decades, Indian students have viewed U.S. universities as gateways to success. But evolving immigration policies under the Trump administration have altered that narrative. A dramatic hike in H1B visa fees and tighter post-study employment rules are now deterring both students and employers. The fallout is immense—students burdened with debt, uncertain job prospects, and delayed opportunities. Drawing from personal experience, this article explores how these changes have made the path to success steeper and prompted many to reconsider studying or working in the United States altogether. Almost nine months since I returned to India after spending a little over two...

US senators Charles Grassley and Richard Durbin have raised concerns about major corporations, including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Cognizant, for filing thousands of H-1B skilled worker visa petitions even as they conducted large-scale layoffs of American employees. Other companies questioned include Amazon, Apple, Deloitte, Google, JPMorgan Chase, Meta, Microsoft, and Walmart. The inquiry comes amid high unemployment in the US tech sector, which exceeds the overall national jobless rate. Recent American graduates with STEM degrees are reportedly struggling to find jobs, prompting the senators to question why companies are replacing US workers with foreign visa holders, as per PTI...