A major US Congressional hearing on the US–India partnership on Wednesday opened with lawmakers criticising the Trump administration’s new $100,000 fee on H-1B visas, a move that several said hurts the very people who keep the relationship strong.
Lawmakers mentioned that about 70% of H-1B visas go to Indians, and warned that such decisions damage goodwill and could even push India toward other global groupings.
H-1B fee discussed during US Congressional hearing
Ranking Member Sydney Kamlager-Dove criticised the $100,000 H-1B fee, calling it “a rebuke of the incredible contributions Indians have made.” She warned that such policies are an attack on people-to-people ties “between the US and India,” and send the wrong message to a community that has powered US innovation for decades. Dove also criticised the Trump administration for imposing tariffs on New Delhi, saying, “Donald Trump will be the US president who lost India.”
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, the first Indian American woman elected to the US Congress, also spoke about her own journey, from arriving in the US on a student visa to later holding an H-1B. She said legal immigration pathways are being “shut down,” and that many of her constituents have been reporting a rise in anti-Indian hate.
Jayapal said Indian Americans are not only important to the US economy but also in vital research that “saves lives.” She added that tariff hikes and visa barriers could push India closer to blocs like BRICS and the SCO, and shared that Indian American businesses in her home state consider the tariff increases “the greatest threat to their business in over 120 years.”
Trump’s policies have not only impacted the H-1B visa holders but also the H-4 (dependents) and even students on F1 visas altogether. Sameer Lalwani, from the German Marshall Fund, warned that hostility towards Indian students, scientists, and tech workers could backfire on the US itself. According to him, the barriers and unwelcoming attitudes may discourage the very people who drive America’s scientific and technological progress.
Indian-American community acts as ‘bridge’
Committee Chairman Bill Huizenga spoke about the huge role of the Indian American community. He said that more than 5 million Indian Americans are part of the American story. From serving in the military to leading big companies, and contributing across every sector.
He described them as “a living bridge of shared values, democratic principles and economic opportunity.” During the session, Dhruva Jaishankar of ORF America shared detailed numbers showing just how big the community’s impact is. He said Indian-origin students, workers, investors, doctors, scientists, and entrepreneurs contribute over $200 billion to the US economy, and help support at least 830,000 American jobs across all 50 states and US territories.