US tightens H-1B visa rules: Alphabet now looks to expand India base with 2.4 mn sq ft office plan
The company has leased one office tower and secured options on two more at Alembic City, a large development in Whitefield, Bengaluru’s key tech corridor
- Feb 4, 2026,
- Updated Feb 4, 2026 8:25 AM IST
With the US continuing to tighten its visa rules for foreign workers, Alphabet, the parent company of Google, is planning a sharp expansion of its India presence, with a major new office footprint taking shape in Bengaluru, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday.
The company has leased one office tower and secured options on two more at Alembic City, a large development in Whitefield, Bengaluru’s key tech corridor, totalling 2.4 million square feet, the report said, citing people familiar with the transaction.
According to the report, the first tower is expected to open to employees in the coming months, while construction on the remaining two towers is scheduled to be completed next year.
If Alphabet ultimately occupies the entire space, the campus could be large enough to accommodate up to 20,000 additional employees, potentially more than doubling the company’s current footprint in India.
Alphabet currently has around 14,000 employees in the country, out of a global workforce of roughly 190,000, the report said.
The planned expansion also comes at a time when US companies are reassessing global staffing strategies amid President Donald Trump’s tougher immigration posture. Increased scrutiny of H-1B visas and discussions about taxing outsourced work could accelerate the shift of critical work to India.
Alphabet is among the top sponsors of H-1B visas, according to US government data. Trump has raised the cost of new H-1B visa applications to $100,000, from an earlier range of $2,000 to $5,000, adding fresh cost pressure for companies dependent on foreign skilled talent.
India, meanwhile, is expected to remain a key global back-office and innovation hub, with TeamLease Services saying in November that the country could host more than 2,400 global capability centres by 2030.
(With inputs from Reuters)
With the US continuing to tighten its visa rules for foreign workers, Alphabet, the parent company of Google, is planning a sharp expansion of its India presence, with a major new office footprint taking shape in Bengaluru, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday.
The company has leased one office tower and secured options on two more at Alembic City, a large development in Whitefield, Bengaluru’s key tech corridor, totalling 2.4 million square feet, the report said, citing people familiar with the transaction.
According to the report, the first tower is expected to open to employees in the coming months, while construction on the remaining two towers is scheduled to be completed next year.
If Alphabet ultimately occupies the entire space, the campus could be large enough to accommodate up to 20,000 additional employees, potentially more than doubling the company’s current footprint in India.
Alphabet currently has around 14,000 employees in the country, out of a global workforce of roughly 190,000, the report said.
The planned expansion also comes at a time when US companies are reassessing global staffing strategies amid President Donald Trump’s tougher immigration posture. Increased scrutiny of H-1B visas and discussions about taxing outsourced work could accelerate the shift of critical work to India.
Alphabet is among the top sponsors of H-1B visas, according to US government data. Trump has raised the cost of new H-1B visa applications to $100,000, from an earlier range of $2,000 to $5,000, adding fresh cost pressure for companies dependent on foreign skilled talent.
India, meanwhile, is expected to remain a key global back-office and innovation hub, with TeamLease Services saying in November that the country could host more than 2,400 global capability centres by 2030.
(With inputs from Reuters)