US court strikes down Trump's ‘unlawful’ $100,000 fee for H-1B visa. What it means for Indians?

IN a john major displace that came as a ease for thousands of highly-skilled immigrant employees in the United States, a union soldier margaret court in Massachusetts's Boston struck down the Trump administration's hike of H-1B visa fee to $100,000, calling it unlawful, contradicting an earlier federal court ruling upholding the fee hike.The fresh order comes in contradiction to a Washington DC federal court ruling which upheld the fee in a case brought by the US Chamber of Commerce.What is H-1B visa?According to the US department of labor, the H-1B program applies to employers seeking to “hire nonimmigrant aliens as workers in specialty occupations or as fashion models of distinguished merit and ability”.Also read: The fight between Trump and Netanyahu to stay 'politically alive': What it means?A specialty occupation is one that requires the “application of a body of highly specialized knowledge and the attainment of at least a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent”.The department of labor says that the intent of the H-1B provisions is to “help employers who cannot otherwise obtain needed business skills and abilities from the US workforce by authorizing the temporary employment of qualified individuals who are not otherwise authorized to work in the United States”.The H-1B program offers around 65,000 visas annually, with another 20,000 visas for workers with advanced degrees, according to a report by news agency Reuters. These visas are approved for three to six years and need to be renewed.Also read: Trump's $100,000 H-1B visa fee is ‘unlawful’, US court rulesWhat was the $100,000 fee applied by Trump administration?In September last year, US President Donald Trump hiked the fee for the application of H-1B visa to a whopping $100,000. This hiked fee was to be paid by employers who sponsor technically skilled overseas staff into the US.Before Trump announced the hike, employers seeking to hire foreign employees for a job that required advanced degrees and skills would typically pay between $2,000 to $5,000 depending on several factors.Why the new ruling matters to Indians?The ruling by the federal court in Boston comes as a huge relief for Indians seeking to work in the United States. Indians constitute a major portion of H-1B holders in the United States and were among the worse hit communities when the fee hike was announced.Around 70 per cent of the H-1B visa holders in the United States are Indians, followed by Chinese, according to data by the US administration.The programme is also a reason for the “rise of Indian-Americans into the highest educated and highest earning group — immigrant or native — in the US”, according to researchers who wrote ‘The Other One Percent’, a study on Indians in America.The new ruling strikes down the hiked fee of $100,000 while the previous fee remains in place. This would make it easier for Indians seeking to work the United States to realise their dream.What next?While the ruling has brought a relief for employers and foreign employees alike, it may be temporary as a White House spokesperson hinted that the order will be challenged in an appellate court."The H-1B programme has been abused for decades, and President Trump finally took action to fix it," news agency PTI quoted White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers as saying.Also read: Indian diaspora groups welcome court ruling striking down $100,000 H-1B visa fee"A federal judge in Washington already upheld a nearly identical order, and the administration is confident this order will be reversed on appeal," he added.However, several American lawmakers, including Republicans, welcomed the ruling.Indian diaspora groups were also happy with the move, but speculated if this was the end of their struggles."All stakeholders connected with H-1B visas will heave a sigh of relief after the court order, but one wonders if this is truly the end of the matter," Sanjeev Joshipura, Executive Director, Indiaspora, told PTI.(With inputs from wires)