Expansion still a possibility.
By Raif Karerat
WASHINGTON, DC: Even though President Obama excluded expansion of the H-1B visa program in the sweeping executive order he announced on November 20, the administration is “still reviewing whether there are ways to expand” the visa program, the Washington Post reported on Monday.
The decision to exclude the H-1B expansion—along with the parents of “dreamers,”—“highlights the legal and political challenges the administration is navigating,” the paper wrote. The deportation of “dreamers,” the children who were brought into the United States illegally, had been temporarily suspended under Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Programs.
“The administration sought a way to include them, but lawyers from the Department of Homeland Security, the Justice Department and the White House examined the legal arguments and decided against it,” the paper wrote.
The comprehensive immigration reform bill passed by the US Senate in June 2013 contained a provision to increase the annual H-1B visa cap, but the House never cleared its version of the bill.
H1-B visas are temporary work visas granted to foreign nationals in specialty occupations. Historically, one of the primary beneficiaries of the H-1B visa programs has been the US information technology industry.
Last year about 172,000 people filed for H1-B visas, but only about 65,000 were accepted. Many foreign nationals who have earned advanced degrees in the U.S. find themselves unable to stay and work due to the cap on H1-B visas. Many entrepreneurs and investors approve of H1-B reform due to the inherent demand for a quality workforce. (GIN)
3 Comments
fortunately, obama’s days are numbered.
Has nothing to do with a quality workforce. It is about a captive workforce and lower wages. More biased reporting.
The purpose of the H1-B visa program is to bring back Slavery to America.