H1-B visa row: Democrat Congresswoman, Republican Senator back US visa for spouses

As the US government gets ready to terminate the H-4 visa for spouses of visa holders who hold the coveted H-1B visa, two US Democratic lawmakers have decided to oppose the move by the Trump administration.

The US Citizenship and Immigration Services(USCIS) chief Francis Cissna had informed a few days ago that the H-4 visas may be terminated this summer. Indians are the majority of H-4 visa holders with 93 per cent, according to a report.

"I will say that the H-4 visas go to women who are just as qualified, sometimes more qualified, than their spouses but haven't been able to work," Indian-American Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal said.

The H-4 visas was started by the Obama administration, a move the Trump government is determined to overturn.

"Our plans include proposing regulatory changes to remove H-4 dependent spouses from the class of aliens eligible for employment authorisation, thereby reversing the 2015 final rule that granted such eligibility," Cissna said in the letter to Senator Chuck Grassley.

Democratic Congressmen Joe Crowley, Ami Bera and Raja Krishnamoorthi also joined hands with Jayapal over the H-1B and H4 visa issue.

Trump's party man Republican Senator Thom Tillis backed Congressman Jayapal, asserting that President Trump wants to have an immigration system that "attracts and retains talent in the country".

"The business people that I know in the Indian American community in North Carolina who have gotten American citizenship are extraordinary people. They love this country as much as I do as an American born citizen. They add a richness to our society that is very important," the Republican Senator from North Carolina said.

"The president of the United States has a view that there is a place for legal immigration, work visas and green cards. Because I've heard him say it more than once. What we're trying to do is debate how you actually get to that policy," Tillis added.