Is the H1-B Visa Policy of the USA the T...

ब

ब्रिज गुप्ता

| Updated on July 29, 2025 | News-Current-Topics

Is the H1-B Visa Policy of the USA the Trump Trap initiated by the anti-immigration administration?

2 Answers
990 views
logo

Prreeti Radhika Taneja

@prreetiradhikataneja4530 | Posted on July 16, 2018

If there is anything in the Trump election manifesto that the Republican President has stayed true to, then it is his intolerance for immigrants. From a seven-country ban in the Middle East, that made his policies the ***** of many jokes, to deporting the illegal immigrant parents of US born children, the man has shown immense commitment in uprooting ‘foreigners’ from US soil.

His latest game? The H1-B visa policy that is sure to send a few people flying back to their countries indefinitely. Let’s take a look at how it happened –

1. The policy states that H1-B visa holders have a 240-day work authorization period after their visa has expired. The processing time of the application by authorities could extend far beyond that because of the backlog.

2. Once the visa has expired, one has to stop working and wait for a hearing with an immigration judge – if they leave the country during this period, they can face a 5-year ban.

3. If they complete an year of illegal stay after their H1-B visa expiry, they can be subjected to a 10 year ban.

What about green card applicants?

Trump doesn’t give any sort of protection to green card applicants and unless the application is in the last stage called ‘Adjusting of status’, one will be considered an illegal immigrant. This status could take a decade time for Indian born people!

What’s the way out?

Once a H1-B visa is denied, a person may be served a notice to appear or NTA in front of the immigration judge. This hearing could take months and one has to plead for voluntary departure – in which case they can go back to their home country and wait for their employer to get reapply. The process is strenuous and once denial is followed by an NTA, a H1-B visa holder is pretty much *****.

The only real way out of this is to make sure that one files renewal of their H1-B at the earliest permissible limit, which is 6 months and opt for premium processing that charges more, but gets the job done quicker!

As for the Trump tramp for immigrants, it just goes to show how the US government is going to make lawful immigrants go through a maze of bureaucratic harassment until they are willing to give up, or caught in the trap!


Article image
0 Comments
logo

abdel rahman

@abdelrahman9779 | Posted on July 26, 2025

The term “Trump Trap” isn’t an official or widely recognized name for the H-1B visa policy, but it's often used informally by critics to describe restrictive immigration measures initiated during the Trump administration, particularly those that complicated or discouraged skilled immigration like the H-1B program.

What is the “Trump Trap” in context?

Critics and some immigration analysts refer to it as a “trap” because of the following points:

1. Increased Scrutiny and Denials:

During the Trump era, especially under the “Buy American, Hire American” executive order (2017), there was a significant rise in:

  • RFEs (Requests for Evidence)

  • Denials of H-1B applications, even for previously straightforward cases

  • Increased focus on whether positions were truly “specialty occupations”

2. Hostile Environment for Employers and Workers:

The policy changes were seen as:

  • Making it harder for tech companies and startups to hire foreign talent

  • Creating uncertainty for applicants who felt trapped between expiring statuses and unpredictable approvals

3. Intent to Reduce Immigration:

The Trump administration made no secret of its goal to reduce legal and illegal immigration. Measures like:

  • Reinterpreting wage-level requirements

  • Pushing for lotteries that favor higher-paid jobs

  • Limiting the role of outsourcing companies
    were all seen as ways to curtail the use of H-1B visas.

Is it truly a “trap”?

It depends on perspective:

  • From an immigrant's view: Many felt lured in by a pathway to skilled work and green cards, only to be blocked or stalled by changing rules, slowdowns, and denials. Hence, "trap" is used emotionally and politically.

  • From a policy view: The changes were designed to protect U.S. workers, increase wages, and reform a system prone to abuse (like body-shopping or underpaying foreign workers).

What has changed since?

The Biden administration has eased some of the Trump-era restrictions, but:

  • The H-1B system is still highly competitive and flawed

  • USCIS has become more predictable, but reforms are still needed

  • Policy shifts have not fully reversed Trump-era impacts

Conclusion:

Yes, the restrictive H-1B visa policies under Trump were widely seen as anti-immigration and aimed at shrinking foreign skilled labor intake. The “Trump Trap” is a critic’s term capturing the confusion, delays, and perceived betrayal experienced by thousands of skilled immigrants during that time.

Let me know if you want a short blog or LinkedIn post version of this.

0 Comments