Following US President Donald Trump’s defense of the H-1B visa programme, Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene has announced plans to introduce legislation to phase out the programme, a move that could heavily impact Indian professionals, who constitute the majority of its recipients.
Trump cited a shortage of skilled domestic workers in critical sectors such as technology and defense.
In a post on X, Greene accused US firms, including Big Tech, AI companies, and hospitals, of abusing the H-1B system to the detriment of American workers. “Big Tech, AI giants, hospitals, and industries across the board have abused the H-1B system to cut out our own people," she said, emphasizing that her bill would “put Americans first" and prioritise domestic talent in technology, healthcare, engineering, and manufacturing.
"If we want the next generation to have the American Dream, we must stop replacing them and start investing in them," she added.
The bill seeks to eliminate the H-1B programme, while allowing a temporary exemption of 10,000 visas per year for medical professionals such as doctors and nurses.
Greene added that even this exemption would be phased out over ten years to enable the development of a “domestic pipeline" of American physicians. She also stated that the bill would remove the pathway to US citizenship for H-1B holders, requiring visa recipients to return to their home countries once their visa expires.
Currently, more than 70% of H-1B visas are awarded to Indian nationals, who constitute a major part of the US tech and engineering workforce. The proposed legislation is thus expected to affect thousands of Indian professionals seeking long-term employment and residency in the US.
Greene’s bill, if introduced, will feed into an intensifying debate in Congress over immigration and skilled labour pathways. The future of the H-1B programme, a key route to US employment and, eventually, a Green Card, is likely to remain a contentious political battleground in the months ahead.
Trump's change in tone on H1-B visa
Trump, in contrast, has expressed support for the programme, stating in a Fox News interview that the US lacks sufficient domestic talent for certain high-skill roles. “No, you don't. You don’t have certain talents. People have to learn. You can’t take people off an unemployment line and say, 'I'm going to put you into a factory where we're going to make missiles,'” he said, highlighting the continued debate over H-1B visas and US labour needs.
This proposed bill adds to the ongoing congressional discussions and public debates over the future of the H-1B programme and broader US immigration policy.
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