A recent proclamation by President Donald Trump has sparked concern among H-1B visa holders from India and China, prompting many to rush back to the United States. The new policy, announced on Friday, imposes a fee on certain visa applications, leading to confusion and anxiety among tech workers and their employers.
According to a Reuters report, tech companies and banks quickly sent memos to their employees, advising them to return to the US before the deadline of 12:01 a.m. EDT on Sunday. The memo warned them not to leave the country, citing uncertainty over the new rule’s impact. However, a White House official later clarified that the order only applies to new applicants, not existing visa holders or those seeking renewals.
The sudden announcement caused panic in Silicon Valley, with several Indian nationals cutting short their vacations and rushing back to the US. An engineer at a large tech company reported that his wife, also an H-1B visa holder, had to abandon her plans to care for her sick mother in India. “It’s quite tragic. We have built a life here,” he said.
Similar stories emerged on social media, with people on H-1B visas sharing their experiences of having to rush back to the US. A woman on the Chinese social media app Rednote reported that she had to cancel her trip to France after receiving a letter from her company’s lawyers advising employees abroad to return to the US.
Companies like Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet, and Goldman Sachs sent urgent emails to their employees with travel advisories. While some companies, like Amazon, later clarified that no action was required for staff currently holding H-1B visas, the initial confusion had already caused significant disruption.
The new policy is part of the Trump administration’s efforts to rework temporary employment visas and limit some forms of legal immigration. The administration argues that the H-1B visa program allows companies to suppress wages and that curbing it will open more jobs for US tech workers. However, supporters of the program argue that it brings in highly skilled workers essential to filling talent gaps and keeping firms competitive.
The proclamation has been met with mixed reactions, with some industry leaders, like IBM Vice Chairman Gary Cohn and Netflix Chairman Reed Hastings, expressing support for the move. Cohn praised the policy as a good idea that will provide more certainty for those who get the H-1B visas. However, critics have raised concerns about the potential impact on the US tech industry and the economy as a whole.
