Major American tech companies to bear the brunt of H-1B visa fee hike

Data from the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) reveals that out of the top 10 beneficiaries of the H-1B programme in 2025, only two are Indian IT services firms and the rest are global

The Indian IT services sector may feel the pinch of the new $100,000 H-1B visa fee hike, introduced by the US administration, but the bigger blow will be to US-based big tech companies. 

Data from the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) reveals the real beneficiaries of the H-1B programme in 2025. Among the top 10 recipients, only two are Indian IT services firms and the rest are global tech and consulting giants.

 

Amazon tops the list with 10,444 H-1B visas, followed by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) with 5,505. Microsoft received 5,189, Meta 5,123, Apple 4,202, Google 4,181, and JPMorgan Chase 2,440. The other Indian-origin player is Cognizant, in eighth place with 2,493 visas. This data on the USCIS is as latest as June 30, 2025.

   

It is therefore no surprise that big tech firms such as Microsoft and Meta quickly issued internal travel advisories, urging H-1B employees to remain in the US.

 

"If you are on H1-B visa and in the US, you should remain in the US for the foreseeable future," said an email sent by Microsoft to its employees and reviewed by Business Standard.

 

Industry body Nasscom in its statement mentioned that while they are reviewing the finer details of the order, adjustments of this nature can potentially have ripple effects on America’s innovation ecosystem and the wider job economy.

 

“It will also impact Indian nationals that are on H-1B visas working for global and Indian companies. India’s technology services companies will also be impacted as business continuity will be disrupted for onshore projects and additional cost will require adjustments. Companies will work closely with clients to adapt and manage transitions,” said the statement.

 

While it is true that the Indian IT services players have been the largest beneficiary of the H1-B visa programme over the years, the industry has also reduced its dependence on these visas by hiring more locals. This has also included hiring fresh graduates from campuses.

 

TCS has been hiring around 2,000-2,500 employees in the US every year. In an earlier interview to Business Standard, Milind Lakkad, CHRO, TCS, had said that since the pandemic, TCS hired 20,000 locals.    Top 10 employer-beneficiaries of H-1B Visa 

Employer	H-1B Beneficiaries
Amazon	10044
TCS	5505
Microsoft	5189
Meta Platforms	5123
Apple	4202
Google	4181
Cognizant	2493
JPMorgan Chase	2440
Wal-Mart Associates	2390
Deloitte Consulting	2353

  Source: USCIS (as of June 30, 2025)