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From May 26 onwards, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services will begin accepting applications for work visas from H-IB spouses, reports Aziz Haniffa/Rediff.com.
In what can be termed as a veritable bonanza for H-1B visa holders, the US has announced that it will now provide work permits to spouses of H-1B visa-holders who come to America but are unable to take up jobs despite have professional degrees.
Under existing laws, spouses of H-1B visa-holders, many of whom are Indians, are not eligible to work when in the US.
According to rough estimates, 67 per cent of all H-4 visa-holders in the US are Indians and there are an estimated 600,000 H-1B visa-holders.
From May 26 onwards, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services will begin accepting applications for work visas from H-IB spouses.
The USCIS said, 'Extending eligibility for employment authorisation to certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B visa-holders is one of several initiatives underway to modernise, improve and clarify visa programmes to ensure economic growth and job creation.'
Leon Rodriguez, director of USCIS, said this on on why the latest announcement will propel growth:
In a White House teleconference, responding to questions from Rediff.com, Rodriguez said, “Untill now, spouses of H-1B visa-holders were welcomed in the US but were not allowed to take up jobs despite being qualified professionals.
"However, from May onwards, spouse of H-1B visa-holders need to either be a beneficiary of an approved form I-140, which we call an immigration petition for an alien worker, which means individuals on the path to becoming a legal permanent resident (green card-holder) or are spouses of individuals who have been granted H-1B status under Section 106 A and B of the American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act of 2000, which is a big mouthful.”
He further explained, “This Act permits H-1B non-immigrants who are seeking LPR status to work and remain in the United States beyond what otherwise is the six-year limit under H-1B status.”
The Department of Homeland Security, which is the parent organisation of USCIS, said it expects new norms to reduce economic burden and personal stresses on H-1B-visa holders and also their families.
The DHS further said, 'The latest policy will also support the US economy because the contributions H-1B non-immigrants not only promote economic growth but also helps job creation at a massive scale.”
Also, the new rule will bring US immigration policies in line with other countries which allow spouses of highly skilled workforce to take up jobs of their calibre.
Jason Furman, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, who also participated in the teleconference, said, "Immigration reform is one of the biggest levers the United States has to encourage economic growth and to raise wages.”
Furman predicted that this H-4 work authorisation rule "will add both talented workers to the US economy and also create more certainty for the H-1B holders and potential applicants to stay back in the US."
He said President Obama’s administrative actions on immigration "taken as a whole will raise the GDP by 0.5 per cent after 10 years -- that is equivalent to $100 billion in real GDP in 2024 in today’s dollars -- and would have no impact on the likelihood for employment of US-born workers."
Instead, Furman argued, "It would contribute to higher wages for US-born workers by an average of 0.4 per cent in 2024 or $220 in today’s dollars and this additional growth would cut the deficit by $30 billion in 2024."