Free Republic

President Donald Trump on Friday rolled out a version of his administration’s long-promised gold card, a $1 million fast-track for wealthy foreigners to live and work in the United States. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, in a call later with reporters, said the gold card will replace the current EB-1 and EB-2 visa programs for people who are of “exceptional value” to the United States. He said the administration expects to initially make 80,000 gold cards available but will continue to evaluate the model and could eventually phase out other visas.

India said on Saturday that the Trump administration’s move to increase U.S. H-1B visa fees to $100,000 per year was likely to have humanitarian consequences, warning of potential disruptions for families. India was the largest beneficiary of the U.S. H-1B skilled worker visas last year, accounting for 71% of approved applications. Companies will now have to pay the new $100,000 per year fee, which is set to take effect from Saturday midnight. (0400 GMT on Sunday). The move, announced on Friday, could further strain ties between India and the U.S., which hit their lowest point in decades after President Donald...

Hours after the US administration put a prohibitive USD 100,000 (about Rs 88 lakh) as fee for H-1B visa applications, India said on Saturday that this measure is likely to have “humanitarian consequences by way of the disruption caused for families” and the Indian government expressed hoped that these disruptions can be “addressed suitably by the US authorities”. The Ministry of External Affairs’ official spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “The Government has seen reports related to the proposed restrictions on the US H-1B visa program. The full implications of the measure are being studied by all concerned, including by Indian industry,...

New Delhi: United States President Donald Trump hiking H-1B non-immigrant visa fees to a steep USD 100,000 would affect thousands of Indian students with the American dream. It will sharply reduce low and mid-paid H-1B hiring, concentrate approvals on senior and high-value roles, and force employers and employees to shift to alternative pathways, or restructure staffing models. Immediate effects are already visible in travel advisories and market reactions; medium-term effects will reshape sourcing strategies in tech, professional services, and higher education. The hike would mainly affect those aspiring for a middle or entry-level jobs, where the early career median wage...

India’s top IT industry body, Nasscom, has raised alarm over the US’ decision to impose a steep USD 100,000 annual fee on H-1B visa applications, warning that the move could disrupt global operations of Indian technology services companies and unsettle thousands of skilled professionals working onshore in the US. The IT body added that what is even more concerning is that the order, which takes effect at 12:01 am on September 21, leaves just a one-day window for compliance. Nasscom said the abrupt rollout has created “considerable uncertainty for businesses, professionals, and students across the world.” Adjustments of this nature...

The Trump administration said on Friday it would ask companies to pay $100,000 per year for H-1B worker visas, potentially dealing a big blow to the technology sector that relies heavily on skilled workers from India as well China. Tech giants Amazon and Microsoft have already advised their foreign employees holding H-1B and H-4 visas to immediately return to the United States and urged the H-1B holders to stay in the US "for the foreseeable future", according to internal communications seen by Reuters. In internal notes circulated to staff, Amazon urged H-1B visa holders currently in the United States to...

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Friday signed a proclamation that will require a $100,000 annual visa fee for highly-skilled foreign workers and rolled out a $1 million “gold card” visa as a pathway to U.S. citizenship for wealthy individuals, moves that face near-certain legal challenges amid widespread criticism he is sidestepping Congress.If the moves survive legal muster, they will deliver staggering price increases. The visa fee for skilled workers would jump from $215. The fee for investor visas, which are common in many European countries, would climb from $10,000-$20,000 a year.H-1B visas, which require at least a bachelor's...

A leading U.S. tech giant has issued an urgent advisory to its H-1B employees visiting India, warning that they may be unable to return to the United States after September 21, unless their visa petitions carry an additional $100,000 payment as required under a new Trump administration proclamation. Employees already in the U.S. have been told to remain there for the foreseeable future to avoid being locked out. While the proclamation does not directly reference H-4 dependents, the advisory recommends that spouses and children on dependent visas also avoid international travel. -snip- For H-1B employees currently outside the U.S., including...

-snip- Foreign workers, starting September 21, can’t enter the U.S. on an H-1B visa unless their employer’s petition (the paperwork requesting the visa) includes an extra $100,000 payment to the federal government. This fee must be renewed and paid annually, according to United States Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick. -snip- Nationally, there are approximately 730,000 active H-1B holders as of early 2025. -snip- Washington currently ranks 4th nationally for H-1B activity. The state, particularly the Seattle metropolitan area, is a major hub for the U.S. tech industry, with companies like Amazon and Microsoft relying heavily on H-1B visas to hire...

The Trump administration is planning to add a $100,000 to the fee for H-1B visa applications, taking aim at a program that is used to attract highly skilled workers to the U.S. The additional fee, which was confirmed to CBS News by a White House official, would impact employers including tech giants such as Amazon, IBM, Microsoft and Google, which have relied on the program to hire foreign workers. President Trump could sign a proclamation adding the new fee as soon as Friday, and which would restrict H-1B workers from entering the U.S. unless accompanied by the $100,000 payment, according...

A new proposal by Senator Jim Banks aims to restructure the H-1B visa system, drastically raising wage requirements and limiting alternatives companies use to hire foreign workers. -snip- The American Tech Workforce Act includes three main reforms. First, it increases the minimum required salary for H-1B visa holders from $60,000 to $150,000, which may disincentivize companies to look abroad for talent. The bill would also eliminate the OPT program, which allows foreign graduates to work in the U.S. for up to three years post-graduation. Thirdly, the bill replaces the current lottery system with a model awarding visas to the highest-bidding...

President Donald Trump is planning to introduce a new $100,000 fee for H-1B visas

Probably the strangest, saddest specter on the employment front in the U.S. is the inability of U.S. engineering graduates and older engineers to secure jobs in today's market.All that talk about STEM majors, and taking a demanding degree instead of a gut major in college rings hollow given that even liberal arts and fine arts college graduates have a better chance of getting a meaningful job than today's computer engineering majors.Seriously.According to Raghavan Mayur's TIPP Insights:This fact was documented by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York earlier in the spring.A link to the study and an anecdotal news report...

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Tianjin presented the West with a striking image: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Chinese President Xi Jinping together, projecting a rare display of camaraderie among the three major world powers.“Always a delight to meet President Putin!” Modi wrote in a social media post.The move was welcomed by Russia and China, who are actively challenging the United States’ position atop the global order.Xi proposed “a multipolar world” with a new SCO development bank, parallel to Western global institutions. This threatens to hurt the influence of the international order based on...

If you think the H-1B visa program is about bringing in “the best and brightest,” think again. What we’ve actually imported is an army of cheap, unqualified labor that’s gutted our tech industry, sunk wages, and turned once-prestigious jobs into low-level coding sweatshops. Economist Peter St. Onge breaks it down perfectly in this clip… what was sold to Americans as this “high-skilled program” is now a marathon race-to-the-bottom that’s costing us our jobs, our innovation, and our competitive edge. But here’s the good news: President Trump and JD Vance are putting an end to the H-1B “bait-and-switch.” They’re ripping out...

After imposing steep tariffs on Indian goods, the US seems to be exploring a new front: potential tariffs on IT services, foreign remote workers, and outsourced business processes. Coupled with proposals to overhaul the H-1B visa system, and an increased levy on remittances made by Green Card holders and temporary visa workers, the move points to a broader strategy that could constrain India's most significant export engine: its human resources, including its engineers, coders, and students who sustain both Silicon Valley and the ITES boom in the US. The debate gained traction when conservative commentator Jack Posobiec posted on X...

The US H-1B visa system is about to undergo a major shakeup, which could impact many Indian professionals, who account for the largest percentage of recipients annually. According to US government data, 191,000 H-1B visas were issued to Indian professionals during the fiscal year 2023. In FY 2024, that figure increased to roughly 207,000. The White House has approved a proposal from US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to replace the long-standing lottery system with a wage-based selection process. Under the new framework, H-1B visas would be issued to applicants in order of the salaries offered to them, starting with...

New York: Indians working in the United States on H-1B or L-1 visas are reconsidering their long-term plans in the wake of rising uncertainties. A recent Blind poll, conducted anonymously for verified professionals, found that 45% would return to India if job loss forced them to leave the United States. Another 26% said they would move to a different country, while 29% remain undecided. Pay cuts and quality-of-life concerns top the list of worries for those contemplating a return. About 25% cited lower pay as a deterrent, 24% mentioned a dip in living standards, 13% highlighted cultural or family adjustments...

Former Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan, the country’s longest-serving state House leader, has been sentenced to 7.5 years in prison and a $2.5 million fine on corruption convictions. In February, a jury found guilty Madigan of bribery conspiracy, wire fraud and other crimes.

Tennessee Rep. Tim Burchett has alleged that staffers in Joe Biden’s administration engaged in a “cash for clemency” scheme, using an autopen to issue pardons in exchange for financial payoffs. An autopen is a device that mechanically reproduces signatures. On Tuesday, Rep. Burchett appeared on “The Benny Johnson Show” and stated, “You are gonna find staffers that were able to take forms, get them and run them through some sort of bogus legal system, then they auto-penned them.” Burchett said he believes there was a pay-for-pardon scheme happening, and pointed to a historical scandal involving former Tennessee Governor Ray Blanton,...