From mint · Siddharth Pai · · 1m 40s
Tech barriers: US can't keep IT work in US despite Indian talent
US immigration rules may block Indian tech workers but can't stop IT work from moving offshore.
In brief
US immigration rules may block Indian tech workers but can't stop IT work from moving offshore. US immigration restrictions on Indian IT workers won't prevent offshore work from continuing as companies adapt to AI and new hiring models. Originally reported by mint.
US suspends key tech firms from immigration
The Trump administration suspended Microsoft, TCS, Infosys, Cognizant, Wipro, HCLTech, Adobe and Capgemini from permanent labour certification.
“The trump administration suspended microsoft, TCS, Infosys, Cognizant, Wipro, HCLTech, Adobe and Capgemini from its permanent labour certification process, Perm, a crucial step before foreign citizens can get employment-based green cards.”
H-1B visa changes affect workers
Existing H-1B visas remain valid but the path to permanent residence becomes less reliable with new $100,000 fees on petitions.
“existing h-1b visas will not be cancelled. this matters to employees whose careers and families are already established in america. what has changed is the reliability of their path to permanent residence.”
Vice-President Vance's comment
Vice-President J.D. Vance called foreign tech workers 'indentured servants', a historically inaccurate term.
“vice-president j.d. vance chose to describe foreign tech workers as "indentured servants."”
Industry adaptation plan
Companies will increase US hiring, focus on campus recruitment and regional delivery centers to satisfy clients needing onsite presence.
“tcs has said it filed only a single-digit number of perm applications in the past two years and plans to recruit another 15,000 people in the us over five years.”
Shrinking onsite teams
Companies will reduce onsite teams while moving more work offshore to maintain cost efficiency.
“the second response will likely be to shrink that portion. for three decades, the industry’s operating model relied on a familiar division: a small onsite team noted requirements, managed relationships and translated client needs into work for far larger offshore teams.”
AI tools boost offshore work
AI can handle coding, testing and reduce back-and-forth communication, supporting smaller onsite teams.
“ai can do coding, documentation, tests and migration scripts, help distributed teams understand unfamiliar systems and reduce the back-and-forth that once justified keeping onsite engineers.”
Business model shift
Companies will move to fixed-price contracts and business outcome agreements to retain pricing power.
“the third response, thus, must be commercial rather than geographical. expect more fixed price contracts, managed services and agreements tied to business outcomes rather than staffing levels.”
Challenges remain
Data residency rules, national security concerns and client preferences may keep some work onshore despite changes.
“there are limits to this prediction. data residency rules, national security concerns and client preferences can keep work onshore.”
Future depends on AI adaptation
The industry must train engineers to own systems and verify ai work to ensure long-term success.
“the greatest danger for indian it may arise from treating ai as merely another way to improve utilization even as its market vanishes. the industry must train engineers to own systems, verify ai work and deliver measurable results.”
US can't ensure work stays in US
Washington can keep Indians out but not ensure that it work stays in the US as companies adapt to new rules.
“washington can keep indians out but not ensure that work stays in the us.”
The essence
US immigration restrictions on Indian IT workers won't prevent offshore work from continuing as companies adapt to AI and new hiring models.
