White House Says It Has Taken Action to Improve H1-B Visa Process and Green Card Backlog

H-1B visa is designed to allow skilled foreign workers to come to the US. (Credits: Shutterstock)

The White House on Wednesday expressed its commitment to improving the H-1B visa process and reducing the Green Card backlog, ensuring fairness in US immigration. The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise.

Tech companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India. Speaking at a regular press conference, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean Pierre highlighted recent efforts to strengthen the US emigration system’s integrity. While specifics were deferred to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the Biden administration vowed to prioritise visa process enhancements.

‘We have taken action’

“If we look at the H1B visa process, we have taken action to improve that and the process and back logs for lawful permanent residents who are eligible to become us citizens. Just last month, for example, as a part of our efforts to strengthen the integrity of our immigration system and reduce the potential for fraud, DHS published a final rule relating to H1B visas,” Pierre told reporters.

“The changes promote fairer and more equitable outcomes, and so we will continue our work to improve the system within our authorities, and that has certainly been a priority. Obviously, I would refer you to US Citizens and Immigration Services for any specifics on the actions that we have taken, but we take that very seriously, and we’re continuing to do everything that we can to improve the visa process,” she added.

Last month, the US government announced a final rule for the fiscal year 2025 (FY 2025) H-1B cap to bolster the integrity of the H-1B registration process and curb fraud risks. The rule implements a beneficiary-centric selection process to ensure fairness and equal opportunities for all beneficiaries, regardless of the number of registrations submitted on their behalf.

Under the new rule, registrations will be selected based on unique beneficiaries, thereby reducing the potential for fraud and ensuring an equitable chance of selection. Beginning with the FY 2025 initial registration period, USCIS will require registrants to provide valid passport information or valid travel document information for each beneficiary. In January, the Biden administration formally launched a pilot programme to renew the H-1B foreign work visas domestically.

Launched on January 29, the pilot renewal programme will run till April 1 and is likely to benefit thousands of Indian tech professionals. It will allow H-1B visa holders who are currently in status to renew their visas in the US before a temporary trip abroad. This initiative was announced during the historic State visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June last year.