US May Make Visa Renewals Easier For Indians Amid PM Modi's Visit

The Biden administration is reportedly looking to make it easier for skilled Indian workers to stay and work in the United States.

What Happened? The White House plans to simplify the visa renewal process by allowing a small number of Indians on H-1B visas to renew them within the US, eliminating the need to travel abroad, Reuters reported, citing sources. The pilot program would aim to address the concerns of Indian citizens, who make up the nearly three-fourths of H-1B visa holders in the US.

The move comes at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on a state visit to Washington, where he is meeting with US President Joe Biden and several influential figures, including Tesla chief Elon Musk.

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The program will start with a limited number of cases and may expand over time, a state department official told the business publication.

The Biden administration has been working on smoothening out the immigration process for Indians in a bid to strengthen the relationship between the world’s two largest democracies amid China’s growing influence.

These initiatives come as visa processing faced challenges in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. While specific details of the program are yet to be revealed, sources told the publication that the pilot program would also include some workers with L-1 visas, which are available to people transferring from a company to a position in the US.

The easier visa renewal process would benefit the thousands of Indian skilled workers, including technology industry workers, the majority of whom work at Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Amazon, Alphabet and Meta in the US.

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