These changes applied to the H-1B visa program and were announced back in October. They included imposing certain salary requirements on companies hiring foreign skilled workers and also imposing limits on speciality occupation

Calling the entire premise for the new visa rules \"false\", the companies argued that the economic growth created by H-1B visa holders creates numerous jobs for US workers

US President Donald Trump, keen to regulate the country's immigration policies, on June 22, signed the executive order temporarily banning issuing fresh H-1B and L-1 visas till December 31

The executive order that had temporarily banned issuing fresh H-1B and L-1 visas till December 31, caused a negative impact to the valuation of Fortune 500 firms equivalent to over USD 100 billion in losses

Move, made public on Wednesday, less than two weeks ahead of the November 3 presidential election, is likely to impact several Indian companies which send their technology professionals on B-1 visas for a short stay to complete jobs on site in the US

The lawsuit challenges the October 6th order of the Department of Labor (DOL) that hiked the 'prevailing wages' to hire H-1B employees by up to 50 per cent making

New H-1B restrictions: The US government's new order narrows definition of 'specialty occupation' while closing overboard definition that worked well for years for overseas companies doing business in the US

The H1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise

Earlier on Wednesday, dozens of Chinese students enrolled in U.S. universities said they received emailed notices from the U.S. Embassy in Beijing or U.S. consulates in China informing them their visas had been canceled

The data is for the quarter ended June 30, evaluated by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)

The new set of exceptions for H-1B and L-1 visas comes as a breather for IT firms, but interpretation of eligibility criteria by US officials holds the key

Stocks to watch today: Hero MotoCorp, Tata Steel, Eicher Motors, Grasim Industries, Godrej Industries, Prestige Estates are among the top companies that will be reporting their April-June quarterly earnings

H-1B Visa rules: Travel by applicants seeking to resume ongoing employment in the United States in the same position with the same employer has been allowed; H-1B visa holders will also be allowed to take dependents along with them

With top tier IT firms having nearly 60 per cent local hires and high rate of work visa rejections, the visa ban impact could be limited. However Nomura cautions that if the ban continues beyond the pandemic then Indian firms may have to brace for higher costs towards further localisation.

Green Card, known officially as a Permanent Resident Card, is a document issued to immigrants to the US as evidence that the bearer has been granted the privilege of residing permanently

Indian IT services may not have an  additional impact, however experts say clarity on execution of  going contracts if any and long-term cost impact is yet to be ascertained

As per the new fee plan employers filing visa processing requests will have to shell out an $555 (21 per cent increase) for H-B visas, and $850 (75 per cent increase) for L visas

\"Someone from India entering the backlog today would have to wait 195 years to receive an EB-3 green card. Even if we give their children this limbo status, none of them will have a prayer of becoming a US citizen,\" Lee said on the Senator floor

The plaintiffs who filed the lawsuit include the National Association of Manufacturers, the US Chamber of Commerce, and the National Retail Federation seeking to reverse the immigration restrictions comprising those on H-1B visas

There is a looming fear that the Trump administration will return with a revised rule over foreign students' visa, as it did after its 2017 travel ban faced legal challenges