Modi raises issue of H-1B visas with Biden: Shringla

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Washington - A fact sheet issued by the White House later said that the United States issued a record 62,000 visas to Indian students so far in 2021

By PTI

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Published: Sat 25 Sep 2021, 10:14 AM

Last updated: Sat 25 Sep 2021, 10:17 AM

During his first meeting with US President Joe Biden, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi raised a number of issues involving the Indian community in America, including access for Indian professionals in the US and H-1B visas.

“He (Modi) spoke of the issue of getting access for Indian professionals to the United States. In that context, he mentioned H-1B visa,” Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla told reporters at a news conference on Friday.


The sought-after H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise.

The technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China.


“He also spoke of the fact that many Indian professionals who work here contribute to Social Security. The return of those contributions in the United States is something that affects the number of Indian workers,” Shringla said.

A fact sheet issued by the White House later said that the United States was proud to have issued a record 62,000 visas to Indian students so far in 2021. The nearly 200,000 Indian students in the United States contribute $7.7 billion annually to the US economy.

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Modi described his first bilateral meeting in the Oval Office with Biden as 'outstanding', while Biden said the Indo-US relationship is destined to be 'stronger, closer and tighter'.

The prime minister and his counterparts — Scott Morrison of Australia and Japan’s Yoshihide Suga — also attended the meeting of Quad leaders hosted by US President Biden in the US capital on Friday.


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