In a move that could benefit thousands of foreign techies, the US is planning to restart the process of domestic visa revalidation, especially for those holding H-1B and L1 visas. The revalidation of visas will be on a pilot basis, which when fully implemented will help professionals find their footing in the US.
Until 2004, some categories of nonimmigrant visas, notably the H-1B, could be renewed or stamped inside the US. Thereafter, for renewal of these visas, especially on H-1B, foreign technical workers have to go out of the country, mostly to get the H-1B extension stamped on their passports in their home country.
It was also a major inconvenience to foreign guest workers and their employees, especially when visa wait times exceed 800 days or exceed two years. The much-awaited H-1B visa is issued for three years at a time. The H-1B visa is a nonimmigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Technology companies depend on it to hire thousands of employees every year from countries like India and China.
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“We are seriously working on a plan to reintroduce this service for some petition-based NIV categories, and we hope to have a pilot up and running later this year. Will eliminate the need to go abroad for visa renewal. The State Department facilitated domestic visa revalidations until 2004 for applicants who were physically present in the US and renewing visas in certain petition-based nonimmigrant visa (NIV) categories, the official said.
“We cannot comment on how many visa holders will be eligible initially, but the pilot will begin with a small number of cases before scaling up over the next 1-2 years,” a State Department spokesperson said in response to a question. Over the past few months, the Biden administration has taken several steps to streamline the visa processing system and reduce inconvenience.
Notably, this was one of the recommendations of the Presidential Advisory Commission on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, which now appears to have been implemented by the State Department. Under the current rule, which came into effect in 2004, the process to resume H1-B and L visas is to visit the home country and submit your H1, and L1 visa, passport and documents via dropbox or interview .
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People have to wait for months or years for the H1-B visa to be stamped or sometimes they do not get any response after submitting all the documents and are stuck in their home country for more than 2 years. While their families await their return to the US, the President’s commission argued in one of its meetings last year. Propelled by Silicon Valley’s Ajay Jain Bhutoria, a member of the commission, the presidential commission recommended that the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) be allowed to resume processing of H1-B and L visas in the US.
It urged USCIS to set up a separate department or unit to resume processing of H1-B and L visas on fresh basis within the US. The commission felt that the whole process proved too painful for legal immigrants, who have been invited to work in the US to support American companies and the economy.
(With inputs from PTI)