The online hate campaign by American White Christian supremacists against Indians has begun influencing policy decisions in the US. A group of Republican lawmakers in the US Congress have proposed a three-year ban on the H1-B visa programme, which allows US tech companies to hire Indian and other highly skilled foreign nationals.
The bill titled “End H-1B Visa Abuse Act of 2026” has been brought by Congressman Eli Crane of Arizona, who argues that the H1-B visa programme has been ‘misused’ to replace local American workers with lower-cost foreign labour.
In addition to seeking a three-year pause, the bill proposes the slashing of the annual cap from 65,000 to 25,000, establishing a minimum salary requirement of $2,00,000 per year, and barring H-1B visa holders from bringing dependents to the US.
American employers would be required to certify that they cannot find a qualified American worker and confirm that they have not carried out layoffs. The bill would also bar H-1B workers from holding multiple jobs and prohibit third-party staffing agencies from employing them.
Moreover, the bill proposes banning H-1B workers from bringing dependents, ending the Optional Practical Training (OPT) programme, and preventing visa holders from transitioning to permanent residency. The proposal also seeks to ensure nonimmigrant visas remain temporary by requiring holders to leave the United States before changing to another visa status and prohibiting federal agencies from sponsoring such workers.
The bill’s document states the following 10 changes to the existing H-1B visa programme:
- Reducing the annual H-1B cap from 65,000 to 25,000 and eliminating existing exemptions
- Replacing the lottery system with a wage-based selection system
- Requiring employers to certify they cannot find a qualified American worker and have not conducted layoffs
- Setting a minimum H-1B wage of $200,000 per year
- Barring H-1B workers from holding multiple jobs and prohibiting third-party staffing agencies from employing them
- Disallowing H-1B workers from bringing dependents to the United States
- Prohibiting federal agencies from sponsoring or employing nonimmigrant workers
- Ending Optional Practical Training (OPT)
- Ensuring nonimmigrant visas remain temporary by prohibiting H-1B holders from adjusting status to permanent residency
- Requiring nonimmigrants to depart the United States before changing to another nonimmigrant status
Brought by Eli Crane, the bill is co-sponsored by Republican lawmakers named Brian Babin, Brandon Gill, Wesley Hunt, Keith Self (all from Texas), Andy Ogles (Tennessee), Paul Gosar (Arizona), and Tom McClintock (California).
“I am proud to cosponsor Rep. Eli Crane’s efforts to reform and tighten our H-1B visa system, ensuring that our immigration system serves American workers first before foreigners,” Gill said. “The H-1B programme has been hijacked to replace American workers with cheaper foreign labor-plain and simple. This bill slams the brakes on a system that’s rigged against our own people and puts American jobs first again,” Gosar said.
