Golden Visas, H-1B, Restrictionism: The Immigration Crossroads in a Trumpist World

If one were to go by the US President-elect’s campaign speeches, he is not opposed to immigration per se but illegal immigration. During his last stint, Trump introduced several changes to the H-1B visa regulations. The biggest beneficiaries of the H-1B are Indian professionals. One of the important changes that have taken place since Trump’s last tenure is that other countries in the Anglosphere – UK, Canada and Australia – too have begun to focus on reducing immigration numbers. Given the changing immigration landscape in the Anglosphere, it is likely that citizens from developing countries – especially India — currently working or studying in the US and other Western countries may begin to look at work opportunities in countries like UAE, Taiwan and European nations.

Post the victory of Donald Trump in the US Presidential election, several Americans have begun to inquire about possible residency opportunities in other countries – via a ‘golden visa’. A golden visa is a long-term visa secured via investment – in real estate or start-ups. Some of the countries popular for issuing golden visas are Portugal, Malta, Greece and, in recent years, the UAE. According to a CNN report, there has been a 400 percent spike in enquiries on the Henley & Partners website regarding golden visa opportunities since Donald Trump’s election.

A lot of media attention has been focused on Trump’s likely approach towards illegal immigrants. If one were to go by the US President-elect’s campaign speeches, he is not opposed to immigration per se but illegal immigration. During his election campaign, Trump also mooted the idea of a green card for international students who graduated from the US universities. The US President-elect had proposed a similar idea in 2015, but did not act on the same.

Trump and H-1B visas

H-1B work visa allows US employers to hire foreign nationals with specific skills and qualifications to work in specialised spheres. During his last stint, Trump introduced several changes to the H-1B visa regulations. The biggest beneficiaries of the H-1B are Indian professionals. In 2023, over 2/3^rd  of the H-1B visa issues were received by Indians (Indian IT professionals receive an overwhelming majority of the H-1B visas). Nevertheless, ever since Trump’s last tenure, several Indian IT companies impacted by Trump’s changes to H-1B regulations have reduced their H-1B visa dependency.

The biggest beneficiaries of the H-1B are Indian professionals. In 2023, over 2/3^rd  of the H-1B visa issues were received by Indians.

Trump’s previous stint also saw several professionals on H-1B visas moving to Canada, since the latter went all out to attract professionals. Even recently after Trump’s win, several US nationals explored the option of moving to Canada.

Checking immigration inflows: Anglosphere follows Trump’s suit

It would be important, however, to point out that one of the important changes that have taken place since Trump’s last tenure is that other countries in the Anglosphere – UK, Canada and Australia – too have begun to focus on reducing immigration numbers and as a result. have introduced important changes to student and work visa related regulations.

Also Read: New Zealand’s Visa Reforms: Changing Global Landscape on Education and Work

It is also interesting to note that while it was leaders from right-wing political outfits who first spoke about restricting immigration, several centre-left leaders have also begun to focus on checking immigration inflows.

Apart from limiting enrolments of international students, both Canada and Australia have also begun to take notice of institutions which do not provide high-quality education and end up exploiting international students. In Australia, one of the important steps taken has been to close down institutions which according to Australian education secretary Jason Clare are “ghost institutions”. These institutions, according to Clare, do not really provide quality education but are a “backdoor” for international students to work in Australia.

It is also interesting to note that while it was leaders from right-wing political outfits who first spoke about restricting immigration, several centre-left leaders have also begun to focus on checking immigration inflows. While in Australia, a Labour government led by Anthony Albanese has taken steps to check immigration and the inflow of international students, in Canada a pro-immigration Liberal Party government led by Justin Trudeau has taken several steps to check immigration numbers. In a YouTube video, the Canadian PM said: “In the last two years, our population has grown really fast, like a baby boom…Increasingly bad actors like fake colleges and big chain corporations have been exploiting our immigration system for their own interests.” Trudeau went to the extent of agreeing that his government had made “mistakes” in its immigration policy. Earlier too, Trudeau had made similar remarks.

Given the changing immigration landscape in the Anglosphere, it is likely that citizens from developing countries may begin to look at work opportunities in countries like UAE, Taiwan.

Given the changing immigration landscape in the Anglosphere, it is likely that citizens from developing countries – especially India — currently working or studying in the US and other Western countries may begin to look at work opportunities in countries like UAE, Taiwan and European nations. Already several Indian students have begun to look at alternative destinations in Europe, East Asia, the Middle East and even South America.

Also Read: The Future of India’s Future: Increasing Global Education Opportunities for Indian Students

While in the short run, the stringent immigration policies of countries in the Anglosphere may cause disruptions for those planning to study and settle in these countries, in the long run, these could nudge students and professionals to look at better opportunities in other parts of the world – as discussed earlier. Several individuals may even be open to exploring opportunities in their home countries – subject to a business-free and innovation-friendly ecosystem with reasonable living conditions.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is important to adopt a nuanced approach towards immigration and while rabble-rousing and rhetoric are avoidable, the concerns of host countries need to be understood. Apart from this, Indian students and professionals should seek to tap opportunities in non-Western countries. All stakeholders in India — including the central and state governments, businesses, civil society and academia — need to come up with innovative and pragmatic long-term and short-term solutions to deal with the likely impacts of new immigration policies being introduced by the Anglosphere countries.

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