Ever since President-elect Donald Trump has named Stephen Miller, as the deputy chief of policy there have been a lot of talks about whether his appointment will downsize the number of H1B visas in India and affect the Indian IT services industry. There have been mixed reactions to the announcement. As far as the US immigration policies are concerned, Miller is known as a hardliner.
Miller might continue with his anti-immigration stance which can also include a reduction of H1B visas and restrictions on them. Miller generally does not want especially skilled professionals in the United States.
Undoubtedly, Miller's appointment does bring some uncertainty for Indian tech professionals, especially concerning H-1B visa policies.
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During Trump's first term, H-1B visa restrictions led Indian IT companies to pivot to US hiring, creating over 1,75,000 jobs by 2019 and expanding local investments. This shift, though challenging, strengthened the Indian IT sector’s ability to meet client needs onshore, while the growing demand for digital transformation in North America provided opportunities for Indian IT firms to lead in modernisation and innovation efforts.
Miller has historically advocated for restrictive immigration measures, and if these extend to high-skill visas, it could create hurdles for Indian talent contributing to US industries.
“Despite challenges India’s tech sector is resilient and increasingly looking at hybrid and global collaboration models. We foresee that Indian tech firms and professionals will adapt, diversifying talent hubs and fortifying strategic partnerships in other global markets. In the long run, I believe innovation and value creation will continue to shape opportunities and policies would eventually align with the ground realities,” said Aditya Narayan Mishra, CEO and MD of CIEL HR.
Experts do point out that the Indian technology industry will face the difficulty of fewer H1B visas and consequently fewer on-site opportunities for techies during the Trump regime more so with Miller on board.
“Over a period of time outsourcing and GCC have both matured significantly and they will absorb any such shocks thrown at them which would ensure very low revenue impact and equally lower impact in delivery governance. On the contrary, such acts will open more opportunities to India given its vast and diverse talent pool during the next four years,” said Subramanian S, founder, president and CEO of Ascent HR.
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Despite Miller's hard stance, businesses in the US will need cost advantages to remain competitive and talent for deploying the latest technologies. India is extremely well-poised to fulfil these needs. There is a possibility that there would be many more GCCs being set up in India by US companies to leverage the talent pool available in India and leverage the cost advantages.
In the future under Miller, however, there could be more visa rejections making it difficult for highly skilled workers to secure them. On the other hand, there are reports that the proposed policies of Miller would make it challenging for US companies to hire Indian tech workers if the base salary level for H-1B positions increases and it is likely that due to the strict guidelines and paperwork, the visa processing time might increase.
As a result, many of the Indian IT services companies operating in the US may prefer to hire local US workers. As per reports Miller was born in 1985 in Santa Monica, California and is an alumnus of Duke University.
