FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Targeting H-1B Visa Holders Poses Significant Economic Risks to America
As anti-Indian rhetoric rises this election season, new visa fees and restrictions threaten doctors, teachers, engineers & students who help power the nation.
San Francisco, CA, USA – October 30, 2026 | Indiaspora is deeply concerned by the rise in anti-Indian rhetoric that has accompanied this election season. It is part of a steady stream of efforts to demonize Indian Americans and people of Indian origin who have done nothing other than work hard and contribute to this country. This hostility has real consequences. Fewer Indian students are choosing to study in the United States, and H-1B professionals, recruited by American companies precisely to help them innovate and grow, now face harsh and increasingly personal attacks. These workers have done exactly what was asked of them. They have built companies, strengthened communities, and helped drive the American economy. They deserve recognition, not scapegoating.
Indiaspora is a nonpartisan organization, and civic engagement is one of our core pillars. We are proud of members who are active in both parties, and we applaud the Indian Americans serving in the current administration for their service to the country. Our community is represented at the highest levels on both sides of the aisle. We celebrate the contributions of Kamala Harris and the six Indian American Democrats in Congress known as the “Samosa Caucus,” just as we take pride in the accomplishments of Bobby Jindal, Nikki Haley, and other Indian American Republicans.
But recent efforts to gain political points at the expense of the Indian diaspora are highly concerning. Proposed regulatory restrictions and unprecedented fee hikes threaten to stall key economic sectors:
- Proposed H-1B petition fees exceeding $100,000 severely burden high-tech employers and regional healthcare providers.
- Replacing the randomized H-1B lottery with a strict wage-weighted system is designed to favor higher-paid, higher-skilled H-1B workers, but it does so partly at the expense of early-career graduates, whose likely lower wages give them fewer chances in the draw.
- Eliminating the 60-day grace period for laid-off workers creates unnecessary hardship for skilled professionals seeking to remain legally in the workforce.
- Freezing work permit renewals for H-4 spouses forces thousands of qualified professionals out of the workforce while awaiting administrative processing.
- Proposed fees of up to $70,000 for Optional Practical Training (OPT) and STEM extensions risk closing the established pipeline from American classrooms to American careers.
H-1B professionals have been central to building America’s technology sector, the most successful in the world. Policies that drive them away put at risk the strength of these companies and their ability to deliver for customers, investors, and communities. They will not bring these jobs back to American workers. While Indiaspora fully supports expanding domestic workforce training, driving away global talent will not automatically create American jobs. Companies are just as likely to hire the same people overseas, which makes it harder to deliver the same results and costs the United States much-needed tax revenue. The losses extend beyond the companies themselves to the local businesses, housing markets, and neighborhoods that depend on these workers living, spending, and paying taxes here.
The impact also reaches well beyond technology. Across the country, physicians on H-1B visas fill critical roles in America’s health care system, especially in rural communities that turned to the program because they could not recruit enough American doctors. If those positions go unfilled, who will care for patients in towns that already struggle to find medical care? The same is true in education. In places like the Mississippi Delta, schools have relied on teachers from India on H-1B visas because they could not find others to live and teach there. When these professionals are driven away, it is American patients, American students, and American communities that pay the price.
“H-1B workers from India have helped make America the world’s innovation leader, generating billions for the American economy. Driving them away could have very serious consequences for communities nationwide, from major cities to small towns.” – Sanjeev Joshipura, Executive Director, Indiaspora
Indiaspora represents the global Indian diaspora, and we cannot ignore what these efforts signal. They suggest that some people believe we have no rightful place in this country, no matter what we contribute, or that cheap political points can be scored at our expense. Perhaps it is both. When political candidates or online commentators frame our very presence in America as a problem to be debated, it is insulting, and it is un-American.
Indian Americans have worked tirelessly and made a lasting impact on American life, from the economy, education, and health care to politics and civic activism. We call on Democrats and Republicans alike to reject anti-Indian rhetoric and to resist policies designed to win cheap political points by appealing to prejudice. These decisions ultimately hurt America, from its wealthiest communities to its poorest.
Over the past thirty years, the United States and India have built one of the most consequential partnerships in the world. Leaders of both parties deserve credit for that progress, including the first Trump administration. We have often noted the personal warmth between President Trump and Prime Minister Modi, and we applaud every effort to build lasting ties that benefit both nations. The Indian diaspora has long played a vital role in strengthening this relationship, serving as a living bridge between the two countries. We hope that policies and rhetoric targeting Indian Americans and people of Indian origin will not undermine a partnership that has served both nations so well.
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About Indiaspora: Indiaspora (www.indiaspora.org) is a nonprofit community of powerful global Indian leaders from diverse backgrounds and professions who are committed to inspiring the diaspora to be a force for positive impact by providing a platform to collaborate, engage, and catalyze social change.
Media Contact:
USA (Los Angeles, California)
Sameer Acharya
Manager, Marketing & Communications
