Are H-1B visa holders taking American jobs away? Controversy explained

The H-1B visa program has been slammed by many, with critics saying it has veered away from its original aim to attract top talent to work in the United States.

Donald Trump in September issued a proclamation decrying what many have called the “systemic abuse” of the H-1B visa program, saying it is fueling the "large-scale replacement of American workers" that "has undermined both our economic and national security." The US President instituted a $100,000 fee for companies seeking to obtain an H-1B visa, but the move was criticized by various business leaders, specifically in the tech industry.

Are H-1B visa holders taking American jobs away? Controversy explained(Pexel - representational image)

An H-1B visa, a non-immigrant work visa that allows companies in the United States to employ highly-skilled foreign workers in specialty occupations for an initial period of three years, can later be extended to as many as six years. According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website, these visas are meant for individuals of "exceptional merit and ability." They should hold at least a bachelor’s degree in a relevant field.

Where do most visa holders come from and are they taking American jobs away?

Pew states that nearly 3 out of every 4, 73%, of H-1B visa holders come from India, followed by China with 12%. The remaining 15% includes a mix of counties, and no single country has reached the 2% threshold.

Trump issued a presidential proclamation titled ‘Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers’ on September 19, saying the H-1B visa program was being "deliberately exploited to replace, rather than supplement, American workers with lower-paid, lower-skilled labor." He added that this “abuse” has been used by companies to "artificially suppress wages, resulting in a disadvantageous labor market for American citizens, while at the same time making it more difficult to attract and retain the highest skilled subset of temporary workers, with the largest impact seen in critical science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields."

Trump further wrote that "the large-scale replacement of American workers through systemic abuse of the program has undermined both our economic and national security," according to Fox News.

The commander-in-chief imposed a $100,000 fee, effective September 1, 2025. The restriction is scheduled to expire one year from the effective date.

Meanwhile, Trump directed his administration to "initiate a rulemaking to prioritize the admission as nonimmigrants of high-skilled and high-paid aliens."

However, according to the American Immigration Council, H-1B workers “do not take jobs” from US workers. The website says, “Before an employer can file a petition with USCIS, they must take specific steps to ensure that hiring an H-1B worker will not harm U.S. workers.”

“Employers first must attest, on a labor condition application certified by the Department of Labor, that employment of the foreign worker will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of similarly employed U.S. workers. They also must provide existing workers with notice that they plan to hire an H-1B worker,” it adds.

Who does and does not support H-1B visas?

While prominent figures like Elon Musk have advocated for H-1B visas, the program has also been criticized on both sides of the political aisle, including by Trump and Sen. Bernie Sanders. According to critics, the current program has moved away from its original aim to attract top talent to work in the US, and is being used by several employers to import cheap foreign labor and cut out American workers. In fact, Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Senate Judiciary Chair Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, reintroduced bipartisan legislation in September, in an attempt to close loopholes in the H-1B program.

Musk, on the other hand, has spoken out in support of the program. He pledged to "go to war" in support of the program, saying shortly before Trump returned to the Oval Office, "The reason I’m in America along with so many critical people who built SpaceX, Tesla, and hundreds of other companies that made America strong is because of H1B.”

Musk, however, also acknowledged that "the program is broken and needs major reform," and even proposed "raising the minimum salary significantly and adding a yearly cost for maintaining the H1B, making it materially more expensive to hire from overseas than domestically."

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, too, backs the H-1B program.