Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

US extends suspension of premium processing for H-1B visas

In a jolt to Indian techies in the US, the country has extended the temporary suspension of premium processing for H1-B visas in a bid to clear the backlog.

The suspension was originally slated to last until September 10, 2018. But it has now been extended until February 19 next year, reported news agency PTI.


Premium processing helps shorten the usual processing time of H-1B visa petitions from an average of six months to 15 days for a fee of $1,225 (Rs 86,181). This feature allowed some companies to jump the queue.

According to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, the temporary suspension will help reduce overall H-1B processing times by allowing it to process long-pending petitions. The agency has been unable to process them due to the high volume of incoming petitions and premium processing requests over the past few months, reported PTI.

The temporary suspension will allow the US CIS to be responsive to petitions with time-sensitive start dates and prioritise adjudication of H-1B extension of status cases that are nearing the 240-day mark.

The maximum number of H-1B petitions are from high-skilled Indians. The US CIS received a maximum of 2.2 million H-1B petitions from high-skilled Indians between 2007 and 2017. India was followed by China with 301,000 H-1B petitions during the same period.

During his campaign, President Donald Trump had vowed to make H-1B visa policy tougher. However, according to an Indian American donor and supporter of Trump, this issue is unlikely to cause trouble in US's ties with India.

"President Trump first and foremost is a businessman. He knows how to grow US as a business. He is pretty clear on the position of US Chambers of Commerce that in order to grow the American economy, you need a lot of IT experts and professionals," Chicago-based Shalabh 'Shalli' Kumar told PTI.

"My expectation is that there would be a good monitoring of abuse and fraud in H-1B system. There is a little bit of that, not much. Otherwise when the US economy grows 4-5% per year, there is going to be a very big need of IT workers and IT work, which will still be primarily be going to India and Indians," he added.

More For You

modi-japan

Modi is on a two-day visit to Japan from August 29 to 30. (Photo: X/@narendramodi)

India, Japan to expand partnership; Modi to meet Xi, Putin next

Highlights:

  • Modi says India and Japan will work together to “shape the Asian Century”
  • Japan to announce $68 billion investment in India over 10 years
  • Modi to attend SCO summit in China, meet Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin
  • India and Japan to deepen cooperation in trade, technology and security

PRIME MINISTER Narendra Modi on Thursday said India and Japan will work together to “shape the Asian Century,” as he began a two-nation visit that will also take him to China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit.

Keep ReadingShow less
London migrant hotel protest
People demonstrate near the Bell Hotel on July 20, 2025 in Epping, England. (Photo: Getty Images)

Government moves to overturn hotel migrant housing ban

Highlights:

  • Government appeals against injunction blocking asylum housing at Bell Hotel in Epping
  • More than 32,000 asylum seekers currently housed in UK hotels
  • Labour pledges to end hotel use for asylum seekers before 2029 election

THE UK government on Thursday asked the Court of Appeal to lift a ban on housing asylum seekers at a hotel that has faced protests, warning the order could set "a precedent".

Keep ReadingShow less
Sri Lanka's former presidents condemn Wickremesinghe’s imprisonment

Ranil Wickremesinghe with his wife Maithree

Sri Lanka's former presidents condemn Wickremesinghe’s imprisonment

THREE former presidents of Sri Lanka expressed solidarity with jailed ex-leader Ranil Wickremesinghe last Sunday (24) and condemned his incarceration as a “calculated assault” on democracy.

The former political rivals of Wickremesinghe, who was president between July 2022 and September 2024, said the charges against him were frivolous and politically motivated.

Keep ReadingShow less
Labour MPs Jeevun Sandher and Louise Jones marry in multicultural wedding

Louise Jones and Jeevun Sandher (Photo: Facebook)

Labour MPs Jeevun Sandher and Louise Jones marry in multicultural wedding

TWO of Labour’s newest MPs, Jeevun Sandher and Louise Jones, have announced their marriage after a week-long celebration that combined Sikh and Christian traditions.

Sandher, elected last year as MP for Loughborough, and Jones, MP for North East Derbyshire, tied the knot earlier this month in ceremonies that reflected their different cultural backgrounds. The couple shared photographs on social media, calling the occasion a celebration of “two heritages” as they began their life together.

Keep ReadingShow less
UK sees sharp increase in sex crime convictions of Indian nationals

Figures show a 257 per cent rise in convictions of Indian nationals for sexual offences between 2021 and 2024 (Photo:iStock)

UK sees sharp increase in sex crime convictions of Indian nationals

INDIAN nationals have recorded the sharpest increase in convictions for sexual offences among foreign nationals in the UK, according to an analysis of official government data.

Figures from the UK Ministry of Justice, based on the Police National Computer and assessed by the Centre for Migration Control (CMC), show a 257 per cent rise in convictions of Indian nationals for sexual offences between 2021 and 2024. The number of cases rose from 28 in 2021 to 100 last year — an increase of 72 cases.

Keep ReadingShow less