H-1B visa: Why it's a hot issue, know the pros and cons

The H-1B visa programme has become a lightning rod for a very heated debate.

H-1B enables US employers to legally hire highly skilled foreign workers for three years (extendable to six years). But for some, the visa is seen as a “stealer” of jobs from US citizens. 

Everyone accepts that immigrants are extremely important to innovation in America. Many in the US, however, do not sit well with H-1B, saying it enables worker exploitation.

Holes in the system are abused to the detriment of US-born workers, its detractors, including legislators and the extreme-right crowd, allege.

What does it do?

H-1B enables US employers to hire highly skilled, specialised foreign workers for three years, with the opportunity to apply for an additional three-year extension.

During this period, workers can request green cards and secure permanent residency status, if they desire.

But what's the real score?

For H-1B supporters (now including US President-elect Donald Trump, and Tesla/X/Space X CEO Elon Musk), it's the key to keeping America's global power, including its ability to generate jobs.

A few cases in point: Microsoft (payroll: 228,000), Tesla (payroll: 121,858 workers), Google (payroll: 182,502) are led by people who once worked in the US on H-1B visa.

Jobs generated by these firms are mostly based in America.

There are more than 200 US companies, from Adobe, Amazon and IBM, to Walmart, EY and Zoox that sponsor the majority of H-1B visas, according to a Yale study.

FACT FILE: H-1B Visa

An H-1B visa is a type of visa that allows foreign workers to temporarily live and work in the United States. 

US employers who get H-1B visa allocations can temporarily employ highly skilled foreign workers in specialised fields such as technology, engineering, finance, and healthcare. It's a critical component for US firms seeking global talent.

Innovators

A few other examples: In 2023, six of eight Nobel Prize winners in the sciences were researchers living in the US, and four of those six — including Katalin Karikó (inventor of mRNA vaccine that ended Covid) — were born outside the US, as per Cato Institute.

Karikó is not the exception.

A disproportionate number of US-based immigrants end up winning Nobel prizes, according to the Institute for Immigration Research. 

Since 1901, there have been 148 were foreign-born individuals who either immigrated permanently to the US or were at a US institution of higher learning at the time they received the Nobel. These 148 individuals account for 16 per cent of all Nobel Laureates.

Who are the top H-1B visa recipients?

Top recipients of H-1B visas include major US-based tech firms, as well as airlines, aerospace, banks, hospitals and industrial groups.

The programme also has granted thousands of visas to India-based technology services companies that have US entities, including Infosys, Wipro, and Tata Consultancy Services.

Trump campaign promise

In a campaign speech in June, then-candidate Donald Trump released a podcast in which he said that students graduating from US colleges should get a “green card” to stay in the country. 

While this runs counter to his hardline immigration stance, Trump told podcast host Jason Calacanis that the US needs this to be able to legally retain more high-skilled workers, a major issue for the tech industry. 

Donald Trump is the grandson of Friedrich Trump, who immigrated to the US from the small village of Kallstadt, in southwest Germany in 1885.

In 2018, BBC reported that Melania Trump obtained US citizenship on an “Einstein visa”, reserved for immigrants with “extraordinary ability” and “sustained national and international acclaim”.

Debate

The H-1B visa debate in the US centres on its impact on the American job market, the economy, and innovation. 

Key features:

Pros

Cons

Key themes of debate

Looking ahead

Legislation aiming to reform the H-1B remains a hot topic in the US Congress. Proposals include raising wage thresholds, introducing stricter skill requirements, and reducing program abuse.

Balancing national interests with global competitiveness remains at the core of this heated debate.

Professor’s take

Harvard Business School professor William Kerr’s research addressed the question of whether H-1B is good for innovation, and whether it impacts jobs for Americans.

"What's not debated is that immigrants are extremely important to innovation. What is debated is whether that comes at the expense of native Americans."

Kerr's research indicates that while the programme is good for innovation, it has limited overall effect on non-immigrant workers.

"As with any controversial topic, both programme proponents and opponents are prone to hyperbole," Kerr wrote.

Business leaders

Several notable entrepreneurs co-founded successful companies while on an H-1B visa. Here are a few examples:

What if Elon Musk did not move to the US? Musk, born in South Africa, moved to Canada first before studying and working in the US, initially on H-1B.

Musk found refuge in this special worker visa programme. "I will go to war on this," Musk, a key Trump supporter, declared recently.

What if Musk, now the world's richest man, was blocked from making it in the US when he was just starting off?

One could assume: Nasa (and the world) would be stuck with non-reusable rockets, US car makers will be left behind in the electric vehicle race, self-driving software and space-age innovations, and perhaps it would dull America's edge on the global stage.

Other U.S. Visa Programs for Skilled Workers

#1. O-1 Visa
For individuals with extraordinary ability in fields such as science, arts, education, business, or athletics. Highly selective.

#2. L-1 Visa
Allows multinational companies to transfer employees to the U.S., facilitating international business operations.

#3. EB-2 Visa
Employment-based green card for individuals with advanced degrees or exceptional ability in their field.

#4. TN Visa
Available for Canadian and Mexican citizens under NAFTA (now USMCA), for specific professional roles.