Influential US business fed bats for liberal visa regime

Washington: A powerful business federation in the US has urged lawmakers to bring in urgent reforms in the immigration system, especially the H1B visa programme popular with Indian professionals, to allow corporate America to employ more foreign workers and retain its competitive edge.

The US Chamber of Commerce, the world's largest federation representing more than three million businesses, has in an open letter to the US Congress said the current system of H1B visa and the EB (Employment-based or green card) programmes are "counterproductive to the country's economic, security, and social goals".

The H-1B visa programme allows foreign scientists, engineers and technologists to be employed for up to six years in the US, at the end of which they must obtain permanent residency or return home. About half of these come from India.

"The announcement last week by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) regarding the fact that the H-1B visa cap for the FY2008 was reached on the first day applications were accepted marks the dire need for changes in the system," the letter said.

"The inability of these companies to bring highly educated workers and students into the US severely hurts their competitiveness in the global market and often leads to companies moving operations overseas".

The Chamber has strongly urged law makers to support comprehensive immigration reform that would include raising the EB cap and exempting specific highly skilled professionals in sciences, arts, business, and other critical fields from the final allotted number.