‘More tech growth in India…’: American investor weighs in on reverse migration amid H-1B uncertainty

Amid reverse migration from the US to India, technology professionals are getting sick of tighter visa rules and higher costs, leading to global talent returning to their home countries and settling for jobs there.US investor Hany Girgis weighed in on the shift in a post on X, pointing to LinkedIn figures showing a 40 per cent increase in tech professionals changing their location to India in the third quarter of 2025. He cited a Bloomberg article which said stricter H-1B visa rules and higher filing fees ($100,000) have reduced the number of foreign tech workers entering US, while some engineers are choosing to leave or not come at all.In his summary, Girgis said the trend means “less visa dependency in the US” and “more domestic tech growth in India”, adding that global talent is “rebalancing, not disappearing”.Girgis pointed out 5 major factors regarding reverse migration:• LinkedIn data shows a 40% increase in tech professionals changing their location to India in Q3 2025• Tighter H-1B rules and higher fees have reduced the flow of foreign tech workers into the US• Some foreign-born engineers are choosing to leave or not come at all• India is benefiting as tech jobs, teams, and capital shift back home• Indian tech groups say the shift is real, even if exact returnee numbers are hard to quantify

For decades, the H-1B visa was seen as a golden ticket for Indian workers seeking careers in Silicon Valley and beyond. Pro ‘America First’ loudmouths like Marjorie Taylor Greene and Rob DeSantis have long showed discontent towards the H1-B programme, saying the visa system allows foreigners to steal jobs from native Americans in an unfair competition. It has also been reported that Indian workers often work for a lower average salary compared to an American worker in the same post. This allows companies to use H1-B for cheap and efficient labour.Furthermore, recent policy changes under US President Donald Trump and his administration have made the programme less attractive. In September, the administration raised H-1B application fees to $100,000. Foreign-born professionals now face greater uncertainty, even when legally employed. Moreover, intense social media screening investigating any kind of digital footprint which showed ‘un-American’ elements could bar immigrants from entering US.One example cited is Kunal Bahl, an India-born engineer who earned an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and secured an internship at Microsoft. His H-1B application was rejected in 2007, forcing him to return to India at the age of 23.Back in India, Bahl went on to co-found Snapdeal, which was later valued at $6.5 billion. He now supports professionals facing visa uncertainty through his venture fund, saying interest from US-based founders is rising fast. Meanwhile, companies that once hired Indian engineers in the US are increasingly building teams in India instead.