The US State Department is planning to launch a pilot programme offering visa renewal options in the US itself to foreign tech workers on H-1B and L1 visas. The pilot programme will come into effect later this year and will help ease the bottleneck that foreign workers face when required to renew visas abroad.
Until 2004, the H-1B visa could be renewed or stamped inside the US. Since then, foreign tech workers have had to go back to their home country to get the H-1B extension.
However, the pilot programme wouldn’t apply to laid-off H-1B workers. These workers must leave the US after 60 days if they can’t find new employment.
Experts say not all H-1B and all L-1 workers in the US will immediately be eligible for stateside visa renewal. The State Department’s criteria are still unknown. It is also not clear whether the initial launch will include dependent family members of H1B and L1 visa holders.
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