Two influential lawmakers from California have introduced legislation in the US House of Representatives to protect work authorisation of H-4 visa workers, a significant number of whom are Indian-American women.<\/p>\n
The introduction of such legislation comes days after the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said that it would publish this month the long-promised regulation that would prevent the work authorisation to spouses on H-4 visas.<\/p>\n
H-4 visas are issued to the spouses of H-1B visa holders, a significantly large number of whom are high-skilled professionals from India.<\/p>\n
This week, the Trump administration announced plans to overturn current the DHS regulations that allow certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B visa holders who are stuck in green card backlogs to obtain employment authorisation, pursue their own professional goals and contribute to the US economy, said the lawmakers Anna G Eshoo and Zoe Lofgren.<\/p>\n
Many H-4 visa holders are highly skilled professionals, and the DHS previously extended eligibility for employment authorisation to them recognising the economic burdens of families of many H-1B workers, particularly those who live in high-cost areas like Silicon Valley on a single income as they await green card approvals, they said.<\/p>\n
Since the rule was implemented, over 100,000 workers, mainly women, have received employment authorisation, and the H-4 Employment Protection Act prohibits the Trump administration from revoking this important rule.<\/p>\n
“H-4 visa holders deserve a chance to contribute to their local economies and provide for their families,” Eshoo said.<\/p>\n
“This is a matter of economic fairness and this legislation ensures it will continue,” she added.<\/p>\n
H-4 visa holders had obtained work permits under a special order issued by the previous Obama administration. Indian-Americans were a major beneficiary of this provision. More than one lakh H-4 visa holders have been beneficiary of this rule.<\/p>\n
“While the Trump administration sits on its hands and does nothing, American citizens in-waiting are stuck in line for their number to come up,” Lofgren said.<\/p>\n
“Nobody benefits from this system, least of all the American economy when H-1B dependent spouses are prohibited from working. Many of these are accomplished and qualified individuals whose skills we’ll lose to other countries unless the Administration finds a more sensible approach to immigration,” she said.<\/p>\n
Last November, Eshoo and Lofgren originally introduced the H-4 Employment Protection Act.<\/p>\n
In March 2018, Eshoo and Lofgren led 13 Members of Congress in writing to DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, urging her to reconsider DHS’s proposal to revoke eligibility for employment authorisation to H-4 dependent spouses.<\/p>\n
A 2015 rule issued by the Obama administration allows work permits for spouses who otherwise could not be employed while H-1B visa holders seek permanent resident status, a process that can take a decade or longer.<\/p>\n
The H-1B programme offers temporary US visas that allow companies to hire highly skilled foreign professionals working in areas with shortages of qualified American workers.<\/p>\n
Since taking office, the Trump administration has been talking about cracking down on the H- 1B visa scheme.<\/p>\n
During his election campaign, President Trump promised to increase oversight of our H-1B and L-1 visa programmes to prevent its abuse.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Two influential lawmakers from California have introduced legislation in the US House of Representatives to protect work authorisation of H-4 visa workers, a significant number of whom are Indian-American women. The introduction of such legislation comes days after the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said that it would publish this month the long-promised regulation that […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":201714,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[1402],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n