According to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services data, more than twice as many H-1B applications were rejected in November compared to the same time period in 2016. Foreigners who were once considered solid candidates for an H-1B visa have been receiving extra scrutiny and delays on their applications under the Trump Administration. An H-1B visa is a temporary work visa for foreign workers with a job offer in a specialty occupation in the United States such as chemistry, engineering, mathematics, and several other occupations that require a minimum of a bachelor’s degree. Immigration officials have increased their scrutiny of the visas through “requests for evidence,” which are documents that require employers to offer further proof of why the applicant deserves a visa. Stuart Anderson, executive director of National Foundation for American Policy, a nonpartisan research organization, stated,
After the Trump team got settled in, the number of requests for evidence shot up dramatically and the approval rates for H-1Bs started to decline.
The data shows that 17.6 percent of the 30,445 completed H-1B applications were denied in November. The administration had promised to curtail a work program for foreigners that it claimed was rife with loopholes and abuse, and the data certainly shows the administration is keeping its promise. Government data show that despite the higher denial rate, most applications are getting approved. According to experts, the increased scrutiny is deterring companies and foreigners from using the program. We will have to wait and see what the latest data regarding the H-1B visa shows and if there are less applicants.
