New York | The low annual cap for US H-1B work visa petitions is currently the main problem facing employers trying to secure foreign-born talent, according to new research. H-1B visa denial rates have returned to low levels after former President Donald Trump’s administration lost in federal court last year, the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) said in a new study released Thursday.
In April 2022, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) reported that employers submitted more than 483,000 H-1B registrations, nearly 400,000 more than the 85,000-annual limit for H-1B petitions.
The denial rate for (new) H-1B petitions for initial employment in FY 2022 was 2 percent.
The rate declined during the final year of the Trump administration when judges declared many H-1B-related jobs illegal.
The research, based on data from the USCIS H-1B Employer Data Hub, also found that Amazon had the most approved H-1B petitions for initial employment in FY2022 with 6,396, followed by Infosys (3,151). and TCS (2,725).
The 85,000 new H-1B petitions approved each year for companies represent just 0.05 percent of the approximately 165 million people in the US labor force.
An H-1B petition is often the only practical way to employ a high-skilled foreign national, including an international student.
In US universities, more than 70 percent of full-time graduate students in electrical engineering and computer and information science are international students.
The 2022 NFAP study found that 55 percent of US startup companies valued at $1 billion or more have at least one immigrant founder, indicating the importance and contribution of immigrants to the US economy.
