H-1B visa deadline today: From Amazon to Tesla, top firms hiring immigrants

The H-1B visa, used by US employers to hire foreign nationals in specialised fields, is especially popular among Indian IT professionals

March 24, 2025, is the final day for the initial registration period for H-1B visas for the 2026 financial year. The visa, used by US employers to hire foreign nationals in specialised fields, is especially popular among Indian IT professionals.

 

In 2025, Amazon received the highest number of H-1B approvals, with 9,265 approved applications, according to data from the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). It was followed by Cognizant Technology Solutions with 6,321 approvals and Google with 5,364.

 

Meta secured 4,844 approvals, while Microsoft and Apple received 4,725 and 3,873 respectively.

 

Other major companies on the list include:

 

HCL America Inc: 2,953 approvals  

IBM Corporation: 2,906 approvals  

Walmart Associates: 2,904 approvals  

Capgemini America: 2,795 approvals  

Intel Corporation: 2,520 approvals  

Deloitte: 2,494 approvals  

Tesla: 1,767 approvals  

Accenture: 2,157 approvals  

Amazon Web Services: 2,216 approvals  

Oracle: 2,070 approvals  

Ernst and Young US: 2,335 approvals  

JP Morgan Chase: 1,719 approvals  

Salesforce: 1,525 approvals  

Cisco: 1,330 approvals  

 

These companies typically use the H-1B route to bring in skilled workers for roles in engineering, research, and software development.

 

Indian IT firms also feature strongly

 

Among Indian-headquartered companies, Infosys led with 8,140 H-1B visa approvals in 2024. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) followed with 5,274. HCL America, Wipro and Tech Mahindra also featured on the list with 2,953, 1,634 and 1,199 approvals respectively.

 

The USCIS has not yet released data on the number of Indian nationals who received H-1B visas in 2024. However, Indians accounted for 78% of all H-1B visas issued in the financial year ending September 30, 2023. That year, 265,777 visas were granted, with 72.3% going to Indian nationals between October 2022 and September 2023.

 

Annual visa limits and eligibility

 

The US Congress has capped H-1B visas at 65,000 each year, with an additional 20,000 reserved for applicants who hold advanced degrees from American universities.

 

The visa applies to roles requiring theoretical and practical application of specialised knowledge. Applicants must hold at least a bachelor’s degree in a related field or its equivalent.

 

Common occupations covered under H-1B visas include:

Software engineers, computer scientists, systems analysts  

Mechanical, electrical, civil, and aerospace engineers  

Physicians, dentists, psychologists, nurses  

University professors and lecturers  

Accountants, financial analysts, management consultants  

Market research analysts, marketing professionals  

Legal advisors, lawyers  

Journalists, editors, public relations professionals, technical writers