Shifting work back home to cut H-1B visa need: IT companies to govt

The companies had discussions with the government after the US administration announced a sharp hike in H-1B visa fees to a staggering $100,000

Leading Indian information-technology (IT) companies have approached the government, saying they will substantially reduce their dependence on H-1B visas and bring more work back to India to serve their US clients, according to sources privy to the discussions.

 

The companies had discussions with the government after the US administration on Saturday announced a sharp hike in H-1B visa fees to a staggering $100,000. India is the largest beneficiary of this programme, with nearly 71 per cent of these visas issued to Indian nationals. 

 

While stating the IT companies’ plans to bring back work from the US to India, an official close to the development explained: “They have said they do not want to be exposed to the vagaries, uncertainties, and changing policies in the US that could affect their long-term business planning.”

 

The development coincides with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for India’s self-reliance in all spheres.

 

While a substantial share of H-1B visas goes to global tech majors such as Amazon, Microsoft, Meta, Apple, Google, Walmart and JP Morgan -- who together account for over 94.3 per cent of the 95,109 visas issued to the top 10 companies — Indian IT firms are also affected. 

 

According to US government data as of June 30, TCS ranks second among the top 100 H-1B beneficiaries with 5,505 visas, behind only Amazon. Infosys is 13th with 2,004 visas, while LTI Mindtree is 15th with 1,844 visas. Other Indian firms on the list include HCL America, Wipro, Tech Mahindra, and L&T Technology Services. Collectively, the top seven Indian companies in the top 100 list account for 14,565 H-1B visas.

 

“It’s a bigger problem for big tech companies like Amazon, Microsoft, Apple Inc, Meta, Walmart to tackle as they have substantially more such visas,” the official said.

 

The official added that startup AI companies, many of which had been planning to move part of their teams to the US, which is the global hub of AI innovation, will now likely rethink their strategy and prefer to remain in India.