The former Trump administration’s plan to ban tens of thousands of spouses of H-1B visa holders from working in the United States may have been revoked by the new Biden administration, according to the White House regulatory agenda. It is estimated that about 100,000 foreign nationals, mostly Indian women, are affected by this regulation. The program was originally proposed in Trump’s first year in office as a federal regulation to deny working visa spouses the right to work. Many of those affected live in the Bay Area and both spouses work for Silicon Valley technology companies.
The Trump Administration proposed a work ban for H-4 visa holders that would deny working visa spouses the right to work, and many of those affected live in the Bay Area and both spouses work for Silicon Valley tech companies. (Taken from Facebook)
Sarah Pierce, an immigration policy analyst at the nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute, said the reversal of the ban is a relief to tens of thousands of H-1B workers and their families, who have been living under the constant threat of losing their ability to earn a living for four years. Many Bay Area H-4 visa holders described how their lives had been on the precarious edge of a steel line for four years. Some even said they would leave the United States if they were barred from working.
H-4 visa holders have had the right to work in any field since 2015, as long as the holder’s spouse is licensed under the program. The Trump administration first proposed the ban in 2017, but has repeatedly delayed finalizing it. h-4 visa work rights have strong support from Silicon Valley and corporate America, with the Information Technology Industry Council, which represents most Bay Area technology companies, including Apple, Google, Facebook, Oracle and Hewlett-Packard, as well as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Manufacturers and outsourcing vendors, supporting the H-4 visa. Technology Industry Council (ITIC) supports the continued employment of H-4 visa holders.
The Trump administration is actually targeting the H-1B program to significantly increase the denial rate, especially for human outsourcing companies. Silicon Valley technology companies rely heavily on H-1Bs and are pushing for an increase in the annual cap of 85,000 new visas, citing their need for more global talent. But critics say outsourcing companies and large tech firms are abusing the visa program as a way to displace U.S. workers, lower wages and promote outsourcing.
Ron Hira, a professor of work visas at Howard University, said Biden’s public statements suggest the H-4 ban is invalid. However, H-4 spousal work rights remain a long-standing topic of discussion in federal courts. Some laid-off workers have complained that companies are training H-1B workers to take their jobs. Others have pointed out that H-4 visa holders are unfairly competing with U.S. workers and therefore should not be allowed to work.
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