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Recession makes obtaining H-1B visas more difficult
Troubles relating to the H-1B visa for both foreigners and American businesses have made this traditional means of obtaining a green card more difficult.
A proposal in Congress would have allowed foreign students who complete advanced degrees in scientific fields to gain their green cards and would have eliminated country quotas that result in eight- to ten-year waits for green cards for immigrants coming from India and China, but its backers reneged and the proposal never became law, according to The Economist.
The recent economic recession has adversely affected potential immigrants. The number of employment-based green cards and H-1B visas was lower in 2009 than it had been in many years.
New obstacles also make hiring workers with H-1B visas more difficult for American businesses. Companies employing H-1B visa-holding immigrants found it more difficult to obtain assistance from the recent federal economic bailout, and in January a new law was instituted to prevent companies from using H-1B visas to facilitate outsourcing, reports the news source.
Despite the difficulties associated with the H-1B visa, a different program allows foreigners to earn U.S. green card eligibility through other means. The EB-5 visa program awards green card eligibility to foreign nationals who invest $1 million or more ($500,000 or more in certain regions of the country) in American companies, with that investment resulting in the creation or preservation of 10 or more jobs.