Once upon a time, Yogesh, a vibrant young dreamer set out for the US on an H-1B visa with his wife and child. Now, 10 years later, he is still on the waiting line for an elusive green card. Immigration has increasingly become a waiting game, and a numbers game. The sheer math of it all is overwhelming.
There are thousands of Yogeshs waiting for their number and in Trump’s America, it may never come. “If you were born in India and you are being sponsored for a green card today, the wait time can range anywhere from 50 years to 150 years,” says Cyrus Mehta, an immigration lawyer who heads Cyrus Mehta & Partners in New York. “In terms of H-1B being denied, earlier the denial rate was 6 per cent, but in the third quarter of 2019 fiscal year it rose to 24 per cent for initial employment and 12 per cent for continuing employment.”
He points out that now when you apply for an extension of an H-1B visa, there is a risk that the case might not get approved. “What the Trump administration has done is to heighten scrutiny on the H-1B visas of qualified skilled applicants,” says Mehta. “Each time they apply for an extension, there is a risk of being denied. They have been waiting years for the green card and there is now more uncertainty.”
He cites the case of Arjun who had travelled to India to meet his parents after 10 years. He has not yet been able to return to the US because of extreme vetting. Says Mehta: “The counsellors have just held up the application for weeks and I hope this does not keep on extending, as he could be in jeopardy of losing his job.”
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة March 01, 2020 من THE WEEK.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
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هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة March 01, 2020 من THE WEEK.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
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A golden girl
One of India's most formidable beauties passed away earlier this month. The odd thing is she would absolutely hate this obituary; she hated being written about and avoided publicity for all of her nine decades. Indira Aswani was 93 when she died. But anyone who encountered her, even briefly, was in such awe of her grace and poise, and one could not but remember her forever.
The interest in wine is growing delightfully in India
The renowned British wine writer and television presenter Jancis Robinson, 74, recently came to Delhi and Mumbai to reacquaint herself with India's wine industry. This was the Robinson's fourth visit to India; the last one was seven years ago. On this trip, Robinson and her husband, restaurateur Nicholas Lander, were hosted by the Taj Hotels and Sonal Holland, India's only Master of Wine.
United in the states
Indian-Americans coming together under the Democratic umbrella could get Harris over the line in key battlegrounds
COVER DRIVE
Usage-driven motor insurance policies offer several benefits
GDP as the only measure of progress is illogical
Dasho Karma Ura, one of the world's leading happiness experts, has guided Bhutan's unique gross national happiness (GNH) project. He uses empirical data to show that money cannot buy happiness in all circumstances, rather it is family and health that have the strongest positive effect on happiness. Excerpts from an interview:
India is not a controlling big brother
Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay considers India a benevolent elder sibling as the \"big brotherly attitude\" is happily missing from bilateral ties. He thinks the relationship shared by the two countries has become a model of friendship not just for the region, but for the entire world. \"India's attitude is definitely not of a big brother who is controlling and does not allow the little brother to blossom and grow,\" says Tobgay in an exclusive interview with THE WEEK.
Comrade with no foes
Lal Salaam, Comrade Yechury-you were quite a guy!
Pinning down saffron
In her first political bout, Vinesh Phogat rides on the anti-BJP sentiment across Haryana
MAKE IN MANIPUR
Home-made rockets and weapons from across the border are escalating the conflict
SAHEB LOSES STEAM
Coalition dynamics and poor electoral prospects continue to diminish Ajit Pawar's political stock