Watch more
America Slams the Door: The Bill That Could End the Dream for Indian Tech Workers
Ne
wsRepublican Congressman Greg Steube's proposed EXILE Act—short for Ending Exploitative Imported Labour Exemptions—isn't just another tweak to immigration rules. It's a wrecking ball aimed at the H-1B visa scheme, threatening to shut down the route that's brought hundreds of thousands of skilled workers to America for more than thirty years. If it passes, the fallout for global tech firms and India's professional class would be enormous.
The Thinking Behind the Ban
Steube and his allies see the labour market as a fixed pie: one person's job is another's loss. They reckon the H-1B programme, originally meant to plug skills shortages, has been hijacked by big corporations. Tech behemoths and established multinationals alike stand accused of using foreign workers as a cost-cutting trick, undercutting Americans who could do the job. The bill would slash the annual H-1B quota to zero by 2027, forcing companies to hire exclusively from the domestic talent pool—whether those skills are readily available or not.
India Bears the Brunt
No country would feel this more acutely than India. Indian nationals snag over 70% of H-1B visas year after year. For India's aspirational middle class, the H-1B has been a golden ticket—a pathway from top engineering colleges in Bangalore or Hyderabad straight to California's tech giants.
Scrapping the programme would leave thousands of Indian workers stranded, many already waiting years for green cards in notorious backlogs. Indian IT powerhouses like TCS, Wipro, and Infosys would need to rip up their playbooks entirely. Expect a scramble toward Canada or Mexico for nearshoring, or a doubling down on remote teams based in India.
Part of a Bigger Squeeze
This bill doesn't come out of nowhere. America's been tightening the screws for a while now: eye-watering $100,000 petition fees, new wage-based selection models that favour high earners over fresh graduates. Most political watchers reckon the EXILE Act won't actually pass through Congress—it's more a statement of intent, a warning shot. But it shows how far the debate has shifted. What was once a programme with cross-party backing is now squarely in the crosshairs of the "America First" brigade.
A Risky Bet
The EXILE Act is essentially a punt on America's future competitiveness. Supporters say it'll protect local workers from being undercut. Critics warn it could trigger a brain drain, handing technological dominance to rivals on a silver platter. For Indian professionals eyeing American careers, the message is bleak: the door's closing, and the political winds are only getting chillier. Whether this bill becomes law or fizzles out, it's already done its job—casting a long shadow of doubt over the global tech industry.