US may briefly ban work-based visas

Student visas, work authorisation to be put on hold amid high level of unemployment due to Covid-19

Washington, May 9: The US is working to temporarily ban the issuance of some work-based visas like H-1B, popular among highly-skilled Indian IT professionals, as well as student visas and work authorisation that accompanies them, amidst the high level of unemployment due to the Covid-19, according to a media report.

The H-1B is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers from countries like India and China in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise.

Nearly 500,000 migrant workers are employed in the US in the H-1B status. “The president’s immigration advisers are drawing up plans for a coming executive order, expected this month, that would ban the issuance of some new temporary, work-based visas,” The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

“The order is expected to focus on visa categories, including H-1B, designed for highly skilled workers, and H-2B, for seasonal migrant workers, as well as

student visas and the work authorisation that accompanies them,” it said.

More than 33 million Americans have lost their jobs in the last two months due to the Covid-19 pandemic that has brought the US economy to a standstill. The IMF and the World Bank have projected a negative growth rate for the country. White House officials say that the US economy is likely to grow at negative 15 to 20 per cent in the second quarter.

The monthly jobs report on Friday said that the unemployment rate in the US for the month of April rose to 14.7 per cent.

This is the highest rate and the largest over-themonth increase in the history of the series.