10% drop in H1-B Visa approvals for 2018

A sharp decline of 10% in H-1B Visa approvals has been recorded for the year 2018 as per the US authorities This US Visa is highly popular amongst the skilled IT professionals in India.

335,000 H-1B Visas were approved by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services for the fiscal year 2018. This is inclusive of both renewals and fresh applications. It was a decline of 10% from the past fiscal year in 2017. USCIS had approved 373,400 Visas in the H-1B category this year. This is as per the yearly statistical report of the USCIS.

The rate of approval for H-1B Visas declined to 85% in 2018 from 93% in 2017.

Sarah Pierce Analyst at Migration Policy Institute said that Trump administration has assertively pursued strategies to curb H-1B Visa. These efforts are now reflected in the data, added Pierce, as quoted by the Business Standard.

For the first 6 months of FY 2018, the overall rate of approval for H-1B Visa for fresh and renewal applications declined to 79%. This was a decrease from 85% in the previous fiscal year.

The H-1B Visa program is the chief pathway through which employers in the US sponsor skilled overseas workers. This is for immigrating to the US for work.

The USCIS completed 396, 300 H-B Visa applications against 403, 300 applications in 2017. This is as per the latest statistical yearly report. 396,000 H-1B beneficiary applications were processed in 2018 which is an increase of 13% over 5 fiscal years. It is a decline of 2% over 2017, added the report.

USCIS completed 850,000 requests for Naturalization in 2018. It was a 5 year high and approved 1.1 million Green Cards.

The H-1B Visas are popular amongst IT professionals in India. These are non-immigrant Visas that permit US employers to hire overseas workers in speciality occupations. It requires technical or theoretical expertise.

The US administration led by President Donald Trump has tightened the reins on companies that violate H-1B rules. Trump himself has accused several IT firms of violating Work Visas denying jobs to US workers.

Trump signed the executive order Buy American and Hire American 2 years ago. It seeks to create higher salaries for workers in the US and protecting their economic interests. This is by rigorous enforcement and administration of immigration rules.

The Trump administration directed the Homeland Security Department to enforce rules ensuring that H-1B Visas are offered to the highest-paid or most-skilled beneficiaries. This is in coordination with other agencies.

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