Share Layoff Data, Extend Grace Period For H-1B Holders: Lawmakers to USCIS
WASHINGTON, DC (IANS) – Amid the massive ongoing layoffs in the tech sector, a group of lawmakers from Silicon Valley has written to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) enquiring about the federal agency’s efforts to ensure highly skilled H-1B visa holders can remain in the country after losing their jobs.
With a bevy of employees laid off across tech giants including Microsoft, Google, Meta, in the past couple of months, the H-1B visa holders have been left in limbo with a mere 60-day grace period to find another job or leave the country.
“This group of immigrants possesses skills that are highly valuable in today’s knowledge-based economy and forcing them to leave the US is harmful to our nation’s long-term economic competitiveness,” the lawmakers wrote.
“This issue is of great importance to our constituents because layoffs in the tech sector have accelerated in recent months. The number of tech jobs lost since the beginning of 2023 has already surpassed the total number of layoffs in 2022,” they said.
The lawmakers urged the USCIS to extend the 60-day grace period for laid-off H-1B holders to secure a new job before losing their legal status.
They also requested that USCIS release data detailing the impact of the layoffs on affected immigrants and inquiries about whether the agency has issued guidance to adjudicators in response to the layoffs.
The USCIS had earlier stated that extending the grace period would require a lengthy rulemaking process that would take too long to benefit immigrants who are currently at risk of losing their legal status.
“While we understand that such a change may take time, we nonetheless urge USCIS to pursue an extension of the grace period, either as a standalone regulatory change or as part of a broader effort to reform the H-1B program,” the letter read.
The lawmakers said that extending the grace period will strengthen the country’s ability to retain immigrant talent in the future.
The USCIS recently said that the sacked H-1B workers have multiple options to stay in the country, and it is wrong to assume that they have no option but to leave within 60 days.
The number of tech jobs lost since the beginning of 2023 has already surpassed the total number of layoffs in 2022.
With the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank causing further disruptions in the tech sector, the lawmakers said they feared that the trend would continue.
Led by Representative Anna G. Eshoo, the letter was signed by Indian American Congressman Ro Khanna, Zoe Lofgren, former Chair of the House Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship, and Representatives Jimmy Panetta and Kevin Mullin.
It sent a list of five questions to the immigration agency requesting it to respond by May 5.
The H-1B is a non-immigrant visa that permits US companies to hire foreign workers in specialty occupations, which require theoretical or technical expertise.
It is the most sought-after work visa among foreign professionals, including Indians.
R Chandramouli
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It is quite ridiculous to extend the 60 day period before return to their native country, while thousands of local techies ( citizens and permanent residents) are still unemployed. Arguing that their stay be extended because of shortage of qualified locals is just a big bogus reason. The legislators should remember that the H-1 is SLS are only for temporary residence and not to stay for long time in the guise of looking for jobs. These laid off folks can return to their native country and probably work for the same multinational’s which have multiple design centers in their country. Since the pandemic struck most techies are working from home and doesn’t matter where the live here or in Antartica. So, legislators, your focus should be first and foremost to look after the citizens s, put the utmost focus on STEM education so that we can raise the local talent and completely avoid or even scrap the H-1 visa category.
April 14, 2023VMK
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It appears you have got Citizenship and forgotten what you might have gone through.
April 14, 2023R Chandramouli
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It is quite ridiculous to extend the 60 day period before return to their native country, while thousands of local techies ( citizens and permanent residents) are still unemployed. Arguing that their stay be extended because of shortage of qualified locals is just a big bogus reason. The legislators should remember that the H-1 is SLS are only for temporary residence and not to stay for long time in the guise of looking for jobs. These laid off folks can return to their native country and probably work for the same multinational’s which have multiple design centers in their country. Since the pandemic struck most techies are working from home and doesn’t matter where the live here or in Antartica. So, legislators, your focus should be first and foremost to look after the citizens s, put the utmost focus on STEM education so that we can raise the local talent
April 14, 2023MAGA
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Agree 100 percent , these guys knew they were temp workers and while good gard working Americans are being let go it is unfair for them because they again have to compete with temp workers to get a job. For any nation it is nation first and I am sure if they were in India they will say the same. If anything companies should be required to submit how many citizens they laid off and how many temp workers they still have employed. They should let go of the temp workers before any citizens of the country. There is no accountability of this abuse of the system.
April 14, 2023