By Aaron Miller-
President Trump has explained his latest restrictions on immigration to the U.S as being to protect American jobs in the wake of the impact of the pandemic on the economy.
Immigrant rights advocates have accused the president of using the pandemic as an excuse to execute the restrictions, but the president whose mantra has always been ‘Americans first’ insists he wants to give the country a chance to recover, with American workers prioritised over immigrant workers.
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His proclamation says officials will come up with standards to let in people treating Covid-19 patients or conducting research to help the US combat the pandemic.
Trump’s new rules will admit people who are critical to national security, necessary to help the country’s economic recovery or are essential to the US food supply chain. The new measures don’t apply to people who’ve already been issued valid visas.
The Migration Policy Institute estimates some 167,000 temporary workers will be kept out of the United States as a result of these new restrictions, which take effect on Wednesday.
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It includes individuals who “work in a specialty occupation, engage in cooperative research and development projects administered by the U.S. Department of Defence, or are fashion models that have national or international acclaim and recognition.”
Workers in other industries, like health care and the media are also expected to be affected by the announcement.
Trump’s proclamation also lists a number of impacted workers, including interns, trainees, teachers, camp counsellors, au pairs and participants in summer work travel programs
Employment Based Visas
For the remainder of this year, the U.S. will not issue new employment-based visas under the H-1B, H-2B, J, and L visa categories.
H-2B visas are for non-agricultural seasonal workers, J visas facilitate work and educational visitor exchange programs, while L visas are for intra-company transfers.
The suspension applies to people currently outside of the U.S without a valid U.S. work visa.
The Executive Order provides the U.S. government with flexibility to exempt certain individuals from the suspension. Moreover, it does not apply to those seeking asylum in the U.S.
Trump announced a freeze on green cards in April but did not suspend employment-based visas at the time. Today’s Executive Order also extends the freeze on new green cards to the end of 2020.
Indian H-1B visa holders pivoting to Canada
The H-1B visa is very popular and is issued to up to 85,000 people per year. It allows U.S. employers to hire foreign workers in occupations that require highly specialized knowledge, mainly in the tech sector.
H-1B visa holders sometimes encounter challenges in obtaining a U.S. green card, resulting in them looking to the likes of Canada to obtain permanent residence.
H-1B visa holders
Former H-1B visa holders are among the large number of Indian nationals who immigrate to Canada each year, often through the Express Entry system. In fact, residents of the U.S. were the third-leading source of successful Express Entry candidates in 2018, while Indian citizens were the number one source of talent. In other words, a significant share of those successful under Express Entry are Indian citizens who submit their Canadian immigration applications while living in the U.S.
Such individuals fare well under Express Entry due to their high levels of education, English language skills, and professional work experience.
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