The H-1B visa programme is once again under scrutiny following the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announcement that 1,20,141 applications were selected for the fiscal year 2026. This is the lowest number chosen since 2021, and the news comes at a time when layoffs continue to affect the US tech industry.
Many observers and industry watchers have raised concerns that the programme is not effectively serving its intended purpose.
Critics argue that the current system, which uses a random lottery to allocate visas when applications exceed the limit, fails to prioritise merit or address actual labour shortages. Instead, they say the lottery system allows companies to bypass hiring qualified American graduates in favour of lower-cost foreign labour.
According to them, this not only undermines job opportunities for US workers but also promotes a business model focused more on cost cutting than on innovation or long-term employment growth.
The H-1B visa programme is capped annually at 65,000 regular visas, with an additional 20,000 reserved for those who hold advanced degrees from US institutions. Once the number of applications exceeds this cap, the USCIS conducts a lottery to determine which applications will be approved.
The early selection of candidates for 2026 has sparked further criticism, with some questioning whether companies are using the system to plan future layoffs rather than create new jobs. Critics point out that for an applicant to receive a visa, an employer must already offer a position—raising questions about whether these roles are truly new or simply placeholders for current workers who may later be replaced.
These concerns have led to demand for increased oversight and reform of the H-1B programme.
