<\/p>\n
New Delhi\/Washington \u2013 India has warned that the Trump administration\u2019s decision to impose a $100,000 annual fee on new H-1B visas could severely disrupt families and upend the country\u2019s $283 billion IT industry, with analysts cautioning that the impact may extend beyond India to the wider South Asian region.<\/p>\n
In a statement on Saturday, India\u2019s Ministry of External Affairs said the sudden rollout of the fee could have \u201chumanitarian consequences,\u201d adding that the government is still studying the policy\u2019s implications.<\/p>\n
The H-1B programme \u2013 which allows US companies to hire foreign workers with specialized skills \u2013 has long been a lifeline for Indian engineers, scientists, and IT professionals. India accounts for 71% of H-1B approvals, making it the single largest source of skilled migrants to the US.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis fee threatens to destabilize thousands of Indian families who are already embedded in American communities,\u201d said an Indian government official familiar with the discussions.<\/p>\n
Industry backlash<\/strong><\/p>\n The National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom), India\u2019s top IT trade body, said the one-day timeline for implementing the fee was a matter of \u201cgrave concern.\u201d It warned that abrupt changes would disrupt ongoing projects for Indian tech services firms and complicate workforce planning for global clients.<\/p>\n \u201cA one-day deadline creates considerable uncertainty for businesses, professionals, and students across the world,\u201d Nasscom said in a statement.<\/p>\n US-based investment bank Goldman Sachs advised employees on H-1B visas to avoid international travel until further notice. Tech giants Microsoft, JPMorgan, and Amazon issued similar advisories, reflecting unease within corporate America over the policy\u2019s reach.<\/p>\n Wider South Asian impact<\/strong><\/p>\n While India will be hardest hit, the new fee is expected to affect South Asia more broadly. Pakistani and Bangladeshi tech workers, though smaller in number, rely on the US market for both employment and remittances. South Korea \u2013 which ranks behind India and China in H-1B allocations \u2013 has already pledged to \u201ccomprehensively assess\u201d the risks for its companies and workers.<\/p>\n Analysts warn the measure may accelerate the offshoring of high-value work back to South Asia, as companies balk at the cost of bringing employees to the US. That shift could undercut Washington\u2019s ambitions to stay ahead in artificial intelligence and advanced computing \u2013 fields where India and China already supply much of the global talent.<\/p>\n \u201cTrump\u2019s policy risks hollowing out America\u2019s tech edge while inadvertently strengthening South Asia\u2019s outsourcing economies,\u201d said Rajiv Biswas, Asia-Pacific chief economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence.<\/p>\n Strategic fallout<\/strong><\/p>\n The fee hike also comes at a delicate moment for US-India ties, which have been tested by trade disputes, visa restrictions, and differing views on global conflicts. New Delhi\u2019s measured criticism reflects its need to balance domestic outrage with its strategic relationship with Washington.<\/p>\n Still, observers say the move may play into Beijing\u2019s hands by encouraging South Asian governments to deepen technological partnerships with China if the US becomes less accessible.<\/p>\n \u201cSouth Asia\u2019s tech corridor has been anchored in Silicon Valley for decades. If that door closes, new alignments \u2013 possibly with China \u2013 are bound to emerge,\u201d said Aparna Pande, a South Asia scholar at the Hudson Institute.<\/p>\n The H-1B system, created in 1990, issues 85,000 visas annually through a lottery. The Trump administration says the new fee will ensure that only the \u201cmost critical and rare skill sets\u201d are brought in. Critics, however, describe it as a \u201cpay-to-play\u201d system that effectively shuts out middle-class families and emerging market professionals.<\/p>\n For now, uncertainty hangs over thousands of Indian families preparing to move to the US \u2013 and over a South Asian technology industry caught in the crossfire of Washington\u2019s immigration politics.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" New Delhi\/Washington \u2013 India has warned that the Trump administration\u2019s decision to impose a $100,000 annual fee on new H-1B visas could severely disrupt families and upend the country\u2019s $283 billion IT industry, with analysts cautioning that the impact may extend beyond India to the wider South Asian region. In a statement on Saturday, …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":50172,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,24],"tags":[81],"class_list":["post-50171","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tie-business","category-india","tag-headline"],"yoast_head":"\n