Engaging with US administration, IT industry to find way forward on this: Govt sources on H-1B issue
New Delhi (PTI): The Indian government is engaging with the IT industry and the US administration to find a way forward on H-1B issue, sources said on Saturday noting that the application fee increase hits American companies even harder as they are significant users of these visas for highly-skilled professionals.
US President Donald Trump on Friday signed a proclamation that will raise the fee for H1-B visa applications to a steep USD 100,000 annually. The H-1B visa fee ranges from about USD 2,000 to USD 5,000, depending on employer size and other costs.
Sources said the Indian government is actively engaged with the US government, IT industry, and association Nasscom to arrive at a way forward on this.
Sources pointed out that given that US companies are major users of these visas, they, too, are actively engaging with the US government on the matter.
A look at the USCIS website shows that for FY25 (data as on June 30, 2025), Amazon topped the list of H-1B visa approvals at 10,044.
In that list of top-ten beneficiaries, TCS (5,505) is at the second spot followed by Microsoft Corp (5,189), Meta (5,123), Apple (4,202), Google (4,181), Cognizant (2,493), JP Morgan Chase (2,440), Walmart (2,390) and Deloitte Consulting (2,353).
The top 20 list includes Infosys (2,004), LTIMindtree (1,807), and HCL America (1,728).
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Trump says he ‘hasn’t even thought about’ continuing Iran ceasefire
Washington: US President Donald Trump has said he has not yet considered whether he would continue the ceasefire involving Iran, while also claiming the United States holds the advantage in negotiations.
Speaking to reporters, Trump said he was prepared to make a deal with “whoever is running the show” in Iran.
“They are fighting with each other, there’s tremendous infighting. They’re probably fighting for leadership in many cases. I think they’re fighting not to be leader because we knocked out two levels of leaders,” he said.
Trump added, “When they want they can call me. We have all the cards, we’ve won everything.”
Referring to ongoing negotiations, he said, “They gave us a paper that should’ve been better. And, interestingly, immediately when I cancelled it [envoy trip to Pakistan], within 10 minutes we got a new paper that was much better.”
“We talked about they will not have a nuclear weapon, very simple … They offered a lot, but not enough,” he added.
When asked whether he would continue the ceasefire, Trump replied, “I haven’t even thought about it.”
The remarks come as uncertainty remains over the future of the temporary truce and broader negotiations between Washington and Tehran.
