In a major relief for the foreign tech workers, particularly Indians, the Trump administration on Monday announced it was not considering any proposal of H-1B visa holders by denying them extensions beyond the maximum permissible period of six years, as they waited for permanent residency, said a media report.
“…USCIS is not considering a regulatory change that would force H-1B visa holders to leave the United States by changing our interpretation of section 104(c) of AC-21, which provides for H-1B extensions beyond the 6 year limit. Even if it were, such a change would not likely result in these H-1B visa holders having to leave the United States because employers could request extensions in one-year increments under section 106(a)-(b) of AC21 instead,” said Jonathan Withington, Chief of Media Relations at US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the agency that oversees H-1Bs, according to the report in the Hindustan Times.
Withington according to the report also said, “The agency is considering a number of policy and regulatory changes to carry out the President’s Buy American, Hire American Executive Order, including a thorough review of employment based visa programs.”
The announcement came as a major relief to Indian H-1B holders waiting for their Green Cards who were at risk of deportation if a proposal to end granting extension to visa under this programme was accepted.