NEW DELHI, 20 SEPT

Former Infosys CFO and IT industry veteran Mohandas Pai has warned that the United States' decision to impose an annual fee of USD 100,000 on H1B visa applicants could significantly deter new applications from companies, potentially accelerating the trend towards offshoring in the coming months.

US President Donald Trump stated that the H1B visa programme has been misused to replace, rather than supplement, American workers.

Pai dismissed the idea that H1B visa holders are low-paid labour, noting that the average salary for the top 20 H1B employers exceeds USD 100,000. “People pay more than USD 100,000 as salaries... that doesn’t hold water,” he asserted.

Despite this, he acknowledged that the impact of the fee will be "limited" in the short term, as it applies only to new applications and existing visas remain unaffected.

He predicted that companies would likely increase offshoring due to the high costs associated with the new fee.

"In the next maybe six months to one year... this will happen," Pai added. Industry experts have warned that this move could ultimately slow down innovation in the US.

 Meanwhile, the H1B programme continues to permit temporary employment of foreign workers in specialised fields.