H-1B scam: Chennai okayed 220,000 visas against 85k US cap, says economist

A US economist claims the Chennai consulate issued 220,000 H-1B visas despite America's 85,000 cap, echoing a former diplomat's allegations of widespread fraud

America’s H-1B visa programme has drawn new attention after a US economist claimed the system had been compromised by widespread fraud, alleging that one district in India received more than double the number of visas permitted nationwide. Dave Brat, an economist and former US Representative, said that despite a cap of 85,000 H-1B visas, Chennai alone accounted for 220,000 approvals.

 

Fraud claim sparks fresh scrutiny

 

Speaking on Steve Bannon's War Room podcast, Brat said the programme had been “captured by industrial-scale fraud”, alleging that visa issuances had exceeded statutory limits by a wide margin.

 

He also pointed to the distribution pattern among nationalities. “Seventy-one per cent of H-1B visas come from India, and only 12 per cent come from China, which is the second largest group. That tells you something’s going on right there,” he said.

 

 

Brat added: “Then there’s a cap of only 85,000 H-1B visas, but somehow one district in India, the Madras (Chennai) district, got 220,000, two and a half times the cap Congress has set.”

 

Chennai’s role in H-1B processing

 

The Chennai consulate remains one of the busiest H-1B centres in the world, handling applications from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Telangana.

 

Brat linked the alleged irregularities to the Make America Great Again movement’s opposition to immigration, depicting the H-1B system as a threat to local workers. “When I say H-1B visa, you need to think of your cousins, your aunts and uncles, and your grandparents. One of these folks comes over and claims they’re skilled; they’re not. That’s the fraud. They just took away your family’s job, and your mortgage, and your house, and all that,” he said.

 

Former diplomat describes “industrial-scale” fraud

 

Brat’s comments follow similar allegations by Mahvash Siddiqui, an Indian-American diplomat who served at the Chennai consulate from 2005 to 2007. In the latest episode of Parsing Immigration Policy, she said that in 2024 alone, US officials adjudicated thousands of non-immigrant visas, including 220,000 H-1Bs and 140,000 H-4 visas for dependants.

 

She claimed that many H-1B applications from India were fraudulent, involving fake employer letters, forged degrees or proxy candidates posing as applicants. According to her, some centres in Hyderabad coached applicants and sold counterfeit documents. 

 

Claims of ignored warnings?

 

Siddiqui also said that her team had detected systemic fraud during her tenure. “We quickly learnt about the fraud. We wrote a dissent cable to the Secretary of State, detailing the systematic fraud we were uncovering. But due to political pressure from the top, our adjudication was overturned,” she said.

 

She noted that Chennai processed applications from Hyderabad, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, adding that Hyderabad raised the most concerns.

 

“As an Indian-American, I hate to say this but fraud and bribery are normalised in India,” she said.

 

Siddiqui claimed that some applicants skipped interviews if the interviewer was American, while others sent proxies. She said some managers in India allegedly secured jobs for applicants in return for money. 

 

India remains largest source of H-1B workers

 

The H-1B visa allows US companies to hire foreign workers for specialised roles. Indians continue to make up the largest share, accounting for about 70 per cent of recipients in 2024. Both H-1B and F-1 student visas have become frequent targets for MAGA-aligned commentators.