Did Trump Kill The H1-B Visa? ‘American Dream’ Aside, India Can Now Solve Its ‘Brain Drain’ Issue

Last Updated:September 22, 2025, 08:00 IST

While remaining steadfast on national interest while negotiating the trade deal, India should see a silver lining in President Donald Trump’s H1-B decision

US President Donald Trump signed the executive order introducing a $100,000 fee for H-1B visas on September 19. (Image: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images/AFP)

Elon Musk, Sundar Pichai, Satya Nadella, Indra Nooyi – all of them lived the ‘American Dream’ by going to the US on an H1-B visa.

But today, if they wanted to go to the US for a job for the first time, they would have to cough up $100,000. That is the debilitating impact of the Trump administration’s latest shocking move. And India will be the most impacted.

Did President Donald Trump just kill the H1B visa? Is the ‘American Dream’ over for Indian techies? Also, is this a tactic by Trump to get an upper hand in the negotiations for the India-US bilateral trade deal happening today? Let’s peel off the layers.

Let’s start with some clarity. 

Number 1. The White House has made it clear that the $100,000 is not an annual fee but a one-time fee that applies only to the petition for an H1B Visa. So, this is only for new visas, not renewals, and not existing visa holders.

Number 2. Those who already hold H-1B visas and are outside of the US right now will not be charged $100,000 to re-enter the country. Existing H-1B visa holders can leave and re-enter the US to the same extent as they normally would.

Number 3: The $100,000 stipulation will first apply in the next upcoming lottery cycle. The proclamation is limited to new H-1B lottery applicants outside the US.

This would have settled a lot of anxiety for Indian techies and their American employers. On Saturday (September 20), there was complete panic as Indian techies on H1-B visas – who were back home or in any country outside the US – were scrambling to get on flights to return to the US by the Sunday deadline. Those leaving the US on Saturday for a trip were seen disembarking from flights. 

The rush and anxiety of such H1-B visa holders is now settled, but make no mistake. Trump’s move is targeted at India and Indians. He does not want any more Indians entering the US on H1-B visas and is fixing such a high price on any such entry.

Nearly 72 percent of H1-B visas every year go to Indians – this has been a constant since 2015. In 2024, 2.83 lakh Indians got the H1-B visa, and it was nearly the same figure in 2023, out of a total 3.9 lakh visas granted.

The dominance of Indians in fresh applications is not going to be any different. But now, any company wishing to hire them needs to pay a one-time fee of $100,000. Hence, the company will have to decide if a person is that valuable.

What makes this even more complex is that the average annual salary of an Indian H1-B visa holder in the US is around $65,000. So, will companies want to pay an upfront fee of $100,000 to get an H1-B visa holder on board? It is a big if.

Now let’s understand why the US has done it.  

Trump said the decision will serve the national interest by addressing threats to the welfare of American workers, asserting that misuse of the H-1B programme could pose a threat to the country’s economic security and the welfare of domestic labour markets.

He said the H-1B non-immigrant visa programme was created to bring temporary workers into the US to perform high-skilled functions, but it has been exploited to replace American workers. The share of IT workers in the H-1B programme has grown from 32 percent in 2003 to over 65 percent in the last five years, he said.

The President said the abuse of the H-1B visa programme has made it even more challenging for American college graduates trying to find IT jobs, allowing employers to hire foreign workers at a significant discount. This needs to change, he said.

The dominance of Indians in the H1B visa programme is what has caught the eye of Trump and his supporters said this “stealing of American jobs by Indians” has to stop immediately. Trump’s formula is simple – American businesses should now focus on hiring American workers rather than Indians.

It gels with his political agenda and pleases his ‘MAGA’ (Make America Great Again) supporters. Immigration is a polarising political issue in the US.

But is the US also shooting itself in the foot?

Indians have been a big part of the American success story, contributing to the US economy and being capital builders by serving on H1-B visas. The US has, in fact, been a magnet for India’s best brains to live their American dream and also add to its bank of talent.

Be it Microsoft, Meta, Apple, Amazon, JP Morgan, TCS, Google, Cognizant, Deloitte or Walmart – all have Indians to thank in a big measure for what they are. Denying Indians entry into the future would hurt the cause of these American companies as they will struggle to find equally skilled American talent. In future, this could prove to be a disastrous move.

Now a big question: Is this move designed to pressurise India? The Trump administration has taken many steps against India – 50 percent tariffs, and the Chabahar port decision to withdraw sanctions waiver.

An Indian delegation led by commerce minister Piyush Goyal is now in the US to take forward the negotiations for the India-US trade deal. During talks last week in India between negotiators on both sides, it was decided to intensify efforts in this regard.

Now, this delegation plans to take forward the discussions with a view to achieve early conclusion of a mutually beneficial trade agreement. The timing of the announcement of the H1-B visa crackdown is, hence, critical here.

While remaining steadfast on national interest while negotiating the trade deal, India should see a silver lining in Trump’s H1-B decision. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been speaking about atmanirbharta (self-reliance). “Bharat must stand strong before the world as a self-reliant nation.” the PM has said. “If Bharat is to become a developed nation by 2047, when we celebrate 100 years of Independence, then self-reliance is the only way. There is no alternative. The resolve of 140 crore Indians must be one – whether it is a chip or a ship, we must make it in Bharat.”

But how will this big change happen? 

Top-notch Indian brains staying in India and doing this for the country, rather than leaving for American shores will be the pump that we need. So, this may turn out to be an opportunity after all.

About the Author

Aman Sharma

Aman Sharma, Executive Editor – National Affairs at CNN-News18, and Bureau Chief at News18 in Delhi, has over two decades of experience in covering the wide spectrum of politics and the Prime Minister’s Office….Read More

Aman Sharma, Executive Editor – National Affairs at CNN-News18, and Bureau Chief at News18 in Delhi, has over two decades of experience in covering the wide spectrum of politics and the Prime Minister’s Office…. Read More

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