New H1B visa rules in US: Minimum wage hike may have little impact on firms

Indian IT service providers will have to focus on more local hiring if the Bill gets implemented

With the US Congress re-introducing a Bill to impose stringent laws for H-1B visa holders, Indian information technology (IT) services firms may have to look for higher local hiring there. The proposed new Bill would want workers holding H-1B visas — which are used by a large chunk of employees from Indian IT companies — to be paid a minimum of $100,000, up from $60,000 currently. The Bill, Protect and Grow American Jobs Act, will remove the Master’s degree exemption from H-1B visa norms.

Even if the Indian IT services providers see short-term impact on margins with the wage hike,