WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump has announced that he is planning some changes for the H-1B Visa holders who are immigrants working in technology or medicine.
"H1-B (sic) holders in the United States can rest assured that changes are soon coming which will bring both simplicity and certainty to your stay, including a potential path to citizenship," Trump said on Twitter. "We want to encourage talented and highly skilled people to pursue career options in the U.S."
The White House didn't immediately comment on Trump considering changes beyond those proposed in new rules issued in December by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
U.S. companies very often use H-1B visas to hire graduate-level immigrant workers in several specialized fields, including information technology, medicine, engineering and mathematics.
When asked about Trump tweet, USCIS spokesman Michael Bars talked about the administration proposed changes to the H-1B process, which are highly likely to become final later this year.
The proposal is designed to increase the number of H-1B beneficiaries by 16 percent, or 5,340 more workers, who hold advanced degrees from American universities. It would also entail a new electronic registration system meant to streamline the application process.