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Honestly this was long overdue. The amount of abuse in the H1B program is staggering especially in IT consulting and staffing agencies. They find all kinds of l

Honestly this was long overdue. The amount of abuse in the H1B program is staggering especially in IT consulting and staffing agencies. They find all kinds of loopholes to legally pay the minimum prevailing wage to maximize profit. Unfortunately, legitimate employers also have to use the same H1B visa due to the lack of a points based immigration system. This has led to quite a bit of collateral damage and has turned many legitimately high skilled professionals and grad students away from the US towards EU and Canada. At the end of the day, these steps still don't address the root cause of work visa abuse - your legal presence in the US on H1B tied to the employer. You probably need legislation to address this and it's nowhere in sight.

Jako33 7y ago
As far as I know, H1B are transferable, so you are not actually 'tied' to the employer. Some employers are actually reluctant to hire H1B as some people accept jobs they don't really want and then find a better job thanks to H1B transfer being much easier and cheaper than requesting a new H1B.
- vsskanth 7y ago
  I should clarify - legal status in the US is tied to your employment status, not necessarily to a particular employer. If they lose their job, they have 60 days to get an H1B with another employer before they start accruing illegal presence. Also, there isn't really something called an H1B transfer. its a new H1B application every time you change your job, just that you dont go through the annual lottery if you already went through it once or have an I-140 approved.
- random42_ 7y ago
  I went through a transfer of sponsors and I can tell you that the process and cost was the same as getting my H1B the first time. The only difference was that I wasn’t restricted by the yearly cap and the transfer could happen at any time - unlike the first H1B which needs to be filed starting in April and the visa stamped in October.

Jako33 7y ago

As far as I know, H1B are transferable, so you are not actually 'tied' to the employer. Some employers are actually reluctant to hire H1B as some people accept jobs they don't really want and then find a better job thanks to H1B transfer being much easier and cheaper than requesting a new H1B.

vsskanth 7y ago
I should clarify - legal status in the US is tied to your employment status, not necessarily to a particular employer. If they lose their job, they have 60 days to get an H1B with another employer before they start accruing illegal presence. Also, there isn't really something called an H1B transfer. its a new H1B application every time you change your job, just that you dont go through the annual lottery if you already went through it once or have an I-140 approved.
random42_ 7y ago
I went through a transfer of sponsors and I can tell you that the process and cost was the same as getting my H1B the first time. The only difference was that I wasn’t restricted by the yearly cap and the transfer could happen at any time - unlike the first H1B which needs to be filed starting in April and the visa stamped in October.