Legislation introduced in US Senate to reform and stop abuse of H-1B visa system
India TV NewsHighlights A bipartisan group of influential senators have introduced a legislation in the US Senate It was introduced to comprehensively overhaul the H-1B and L-1 visa programmes H-1B visa is non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers Seeking to comprehensively overhaul the H-1B and L-1 visa programmes, a bipartisan group of influential senators have introduced a legislation in the US Senate, which they argued will protect American workers and crackdown on foreign outsourcing companies that exploit these popular visa programmes to deprive qualified Americans of high-skilled jobs. The H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act will reduce fraud and abuse, provide protections for American workers and visa holders, and require more transparency in the recruitment of foreign workers, the senators said. Introduced by Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Senator Chuck Grassley, Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, the legislation is co- The H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act will require US Citizenship and Immigration Services to prioritise for the first time the annual allocation of H-1B visas. In addition, the H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act includes several reforms of the L-1 visa programme, including the establishment of a wage floor for L-1 workers; authority for the US Department of Homeland Security to investigate, audit, and enforce compliance with the L-1 programme requirements; assurance that intra-company transfers occur between legitimate branches of a company and do not involve “shell” facilities; and a change to the definition of “specialized knowledge” to ensure that L-1 visas are reserved only for truly key personnel, the media release said.