An Indian-origin woman working for Microsoft in the US has shared a glimpse of her arduous journey that ultimately led to a green card. Aishani B, a senior software engineer at Microsoft US, said that her H-1B application was rejected seven times before she got a green card.
A green card is the common name for the US Permanent Resident Card which allows a non-US citizen to live and work permanently in the United States. An H-1B visa, on the other hand, allows foreigners to work in specialised professions in the US. Unlike a green card, an H-1B visa is temporary and usually valid for three years.
Seven H-1B rejections
Aishani said that between 2019 and 2025, she entered the H-1B lottery seven times. She was rejected each time.
“I entered the H1B lottery 7 times between 2019 and 2025. I didn’t get selected. Not once,” the Indian-American techie said in her LinkedIn post.
She admitted that the first rejection made her feel bad. By the second rejection, she had started to rationalise.
“The first rejection stings. The second, you rationalize,” she revealed. “By the third, fourth, fifth — you stop telling people. Not because you’re ashamed. But because there’s nothing new to say.”
{{/usCountry}}“The first rejection stings. The second, you rationalize,” she revealed. “By the third, fourth, fifth — you stop telling people. Not because you’re ashamed. But because there’s nothing new to say.”
{{/usCountry}}(Also read: Indian woman claims H-1B visa got 'cancelled' at Abu Dhabi preclearance: 'Overstayed in India')
From rejections to green card
Aishani said that what nobody talks about is the self doubt that creeps in after repeated rejections. “It’s not one moment of disappointment. It’s a slow, quiet erosion of certainty,” she wrote.
Over time, she began to question whether she is “good enough” to be in the US. “Would someone else have figured this out by now? How long do I keep trying?” she wondered.
In 2022, the Indian-origin techie left the US and moved to Canada. The following year, she returned to the US on an L-1 visa. Microsoft, meanwhile, kept filing for her H-1B visa.
All the hard work and years of uncertainty paid off in 2025, when Aishani received her green card.
“A path I never thought I’d qualify for — especially not after 7 rejections. I sat with that for a long time. Because the version of me losing lottery after lottery didn’t feel extraordinary. She felt exhausted,” she confessed in her LinkedIn post.
In her post, she said that a “quiet belief” kept her going even after seven rejections. And in that gap — between each “not selected” and the next attempt — something quietly accumulated. Skills. Continuity. A life that didn’t pause just because approval hadn’t arrived yet.
“If you’re counting your own rejections right now —the number isn’t the story. What you build in between is,” she concluded.