How Trump's immigration crackdown, H-1B visa rules are affecting Indian marriages

Trump's immigration policies are causing Indian families to reconsider marrying their children to US-based citizens.

Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, especially on the H-1B skilled-worker visa program, is allegedly making families in India less interested in marrying their children to Indian citizens, who are currently based in the United States, The Standard reported.

Trump administration's stricter immigration rules have allegedly shaken up India’s marriage market.(Unsplash)

Matchmakers as well as prospective brides and grooms believe that the latest change is due to the fear of the potential partners losing their job or immigration status.

Dreams deferred

Sidhi Sharma, a 19-year-old medical student from Haryana, always dreamed of settling in America after marriage. But after reading about Trump’s policies, she dropped the idea.

“I had always dreamed of settling in the U.S. after marriage,” the outlet quoted Sharma as saying. “Trump has shut the door for me.”

Matchmakers and academics say tighter immigration rules are making Indian families more cautious now.

“Immigration policies may be written in Washington, but its ripple effects are seen at dinner tables of Indian families when they’re talking about marriages,” said Anuradha Gupta, founder of matchmaking service Vows For Eternity.

Desirable to uncertain matches

India has one of the world’s largest diasporas in the United States, with around 2.1 million Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), according to Indian government data. For many families, marrying someone based in the US meant financial security and a better quality of life. But that picture is changing fast.

Trump’s overhaul of the H-1B visa, a program where 71% of recipients in 2024 were Indian, according to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, has particularly hit Indian workers hard.

Vanaja Rao, managing director of Vanaja Rao Group of Companies, said the marriage market is feeling the impact. “Up until last year, there was a lot of demand and craze for NRI suitors and men settled abroad,” Rao told the outlet. “We’ve started to see a slowdown ever since Trump took over, and it intensified in the last six months.”

Delayed weddings and visa filters

Some weddings are even being delayed. A 26-year-old Indian man living in Atlanta, Georgia, who asked not to be named, said he knows of “three weddings that have been delayed as a result of Trump’s policy changes.”

Visa status has now become a deal-maker or breaker. Premium matchmaking platform Knot.dating introduced a “U.S. visa filter” so families can check a suitor’s immigration status before moving forward. “Families want to see the visa status of the suitor or match from abroad before proceeding further,” said Jasveer Singh, cofounder and CEO.

Looking beyond America

With the “American Dream” slipping away, matchmakers like Nikita Anand, founder of Wedding Tales Matrimony, say families are now looking more towards Canada, the UK, Europe and the Middle East for stability and long-term security.

FAQs:

Q1. Why are Indian families rethinking marriages with NRIs in the US?

Indian families are rethinking such matches because of Donald Trump’s tighter immigration rules, especially on H-1B visas.

Q2. How has the H-1B visa policy affected Indian matchmaking?

The crackdown has reduced the demand for NRI grooms, delayed weddings, and made visa status an important factor in choosing marriage partners.

Q3. Which countries are Indian families now looking at besides the US?

Many are shifting their focus to Canada, the UK, Europe and the Middle East.