Significant Work and Travel Restrictions for H-1B Workers and Their Families: Should You Consider Other Visa Options?

Many of the world’s top companies are in the United States and are often looking to hire new workers. Looking to access this full range of career opportunities, thousands of foreign nationals apply to work in the United States through employment-based visa categories.

The H-1B visa has become a popular option for foreign nationals who want to live and work in the United States. Over 780,000 H-1B applications were submitted in 2023 alone.

Indian nationals account for a large portion of the H-1B workforce. About 73% of approved H-1B applications come from Indian nationals. Many of these work in tech, engineering, and similar sectors.

Like many others, you may be considering the H-1B program as a way to live and work in the United States. Or you may already have an H-1B visa.

Unfortunately, the H-1B visa requires each worker to have an employment sponsor. It also imposes other limitations on work and travel. These features of the H-1B visa make it an inconvenient—if not entirely impractical—option for many foreign nationals.

H-1B workers and their families face a high level of uncertainty. Most notably, if an H-1B worker loses his or her job, the worker and his or her family will have to leave the United States in a matter of days. This can and does happen to people who have lived in the country for many years.

In this article, we provide an overview of the limitations of working in the United States on an H-1B visa, especially for Indian nationals. We then explore how you and your family could be approved for U.S. Green Cards through the EB-5 program—and be able to live and work in the United States permanently with few restrictions.

H-1B Workers and Their Families Face Immigration and Career Uncertainty

The H-1B Visa Is Temporary

For you and your family to remain in the United States on an H-1B visa, you must be employed by a firm that participates in the H-1B program. Your H-1B visa will initially be valid for up to three years. Then, it can be renewed for another three years.

After holding an H-1B visa for six years, you will have to spend at least one year outside of the United States before reapplying for H-1B status. Certain individuals can extend their stay beyond six years if they have approved Green Card petitions and are stuck in a visa backlog. This exception, however, is restrictive and requires constant sponsorship from an employer.

In short, the H-1B visa is temporary. It does not provide a long-term solution for a family to live and work permanently in the United States.

If Laid Off, You May Have to Leave the United States on Short Notice

Even with current visas, H-1B workers face a high level of uncertainty. The risk that you might lose your job and be required to return to your home country is inherent to the H-1B visa.

H-1B employers have the legal right to lay off their employees at any time. This is known as “at-will” employment and means you could lose your H-1B job at any time and with no reason given.

If you lose your H-1B job, you may have only 60 days to find another position with an H-1B employer. But finding a qualifying H-1B job and reapplying within 60 days of being laid off is unrealistic—if not impossible—for H-1B workers. Competition for jobs is high, and H-1B employers have the legal obligation to ensure U.S. workers are not disadvantaged as a result of hiring H-1B applicants. As an H-1B worker, you will not be able to claim discrimination if a U.S. company hires a U.S. worker instead.

Switching H-1B jobs will also require you to file a new application with USCIS and wait for approval. If you fail to maintain your H-1B status, you and your family will have to leave the United States.

In 2024, the risk of being laid off is especially high for H-1B workers. The U.S. economy is facing significant challenges. A decline in leading H-1B industries, particularly in the technology sector, will likely have an adverse impact on the H-1B workforce. Indian nationals will be disproportionately impacted since they make up a significant portion of the H-1B tech workforce.

Because of overstaffing during COVID-19 and lower current demand, many large tech firms have laid off thousands of employees in 2023 and 2024. More than 240,000 tech workers were laid off in 2023 alone. Amazon cut 16,000 jobs, while Microsoft and Meta fired about 10,000 workers each.

These factors make it very difficult for laid-off H-1B workers to find another qualifying employer in just 60 days.

Uncertainty for H-1B Workers’ Families

If you are laid off and cannot find another H-1B job, you and your family will have to leave the United States. This is true even if you have lived in the country for years. At the end of the 60-day grace period, you will have to leave.

As a result of these policies, the spouse and dependent children of an H-1B worker are always at risk of having to uproot their lives in the United States at short notice.

When a child of an H-1B worker reaches the age of 21, he or she must switch to another U.S. visa or leave the country. If an H-1B worker’s children have grown up in the United States, this will be a major life change for them.

Under the H-1B visa, your dependent family members are typically not allowed to work in the United States unless they hold their own work visas. This will prevent your spouse and any children you have from exploring the many career paths available in the United States.

The H-1B Visa Significantly Limits Career Opportunities

As mentioned above, for a person holding an H-1B visa, switching jobs is very difficult. If you would like to work in a different industry—or even for a different employer in the same industry—doing so may not be possible on an H-1B visa.

Even if you are hired by a different H-1B employer, you will still need to file a new application with USCIS. You will not be able to begin working in the new position until receiving USCIS approval.

H-1B career options are further limited by the relatively small number of H-1B employers. For example, according to the Economic Policy Institute, in 2019, only 30 H-1B companies hired more than a quarter of all H-1B workers.

Many H-1B workers would like to explore different career paths. Some wish to start their own businesses. Others may be interested in part-time work. Some simply want a break from their careers. But these options are limited or entirely impossible under current H-1B policies.

Travel Limitations for H-1B Workers

If you are in the United States and your H-1B application is pending, international travel could lead to complications with your pending petition. This depends on the status of your visa. The same is true for your family members who are applying as your dependents.

If your H-1B visa expires while you are outside the country, you may have to apply for and receive an extension at the consulate before returning to the United States. This process is often burdensome.

The complex travel restrictions for H-1B workers can make international travel challenging. This limits your ability to return to your home country if needed or to visit family abroad.

H-1B Workers Often Get Lower Wages

The Economic Policy Institute has found that 60% of H-1B positions “are assigned wage levels well below the local median wage for the occupation.”

The same report also claims that many of the top U.S. firms, including leading tech companies, “take advantage of program rules in order to legally pay many of their H-1B workers below the local median wage for the jobs they fill.”

As a result, in addition to facing challenges getting hired, H-1B workers may experience pay inequality.

Challenges for Indian H-1B Workers

Given the high volume of H-1B applicants from India, Indian nationals face a highly competitive job market. This is especially the case in the tech sector.

The H-1B lottery system adds to the uncertainty for Indians who may be looking for more permanent ways to live and work in the United States with their families.

Milan, a former H-1B worker from India, said the following: “I wanted to get out of renewing my H-1B every three years and going through the visa process and all that. It was very inconvenient, and I would have to put stress on family to do that process.”

Unfortunately, uncertainty extends beyond the H-1B worker as he or she looks for a qualifying job and applies for the H-1B visa. Each of the H-1B worker’s family members also faces his or her own uncertainty. Regarding this, Milan notes, “[My son] wants to pursue the medical domain. And for him to get admission into the colleges is almost impossible if we are not citizens or permanent residents over here.”

EB-5: A Fast Path to Employment Authorization and U.S. Green Cards

Due to the various issues listed above, obtaining U.S. Green Cards through an EB-5 investment is becoming an increasingly popular option for H-1B workers.

Through an EB-5 investment, you can be freed from many of the oppressive restrictions of the H-1B visa. Instead of being tied to a single employer—and at their mercy—you can live anywhere in the United States and work for whomever you wish. As permanent residents, you and your family will no longer face the risk of having to leave the country on short notice due to a layoff.

Recently, numerous EB-5 investors have been approved for their initial U.S. Green Cards within 12 months. And one investor in EB5AN’s Twin Lakes project was recently approved in only about 9.5 months.

Even before receiving Green Card approval, H-1B workers can receive an employment authorization document (EAD) and travel authorization in as fast as 33 days.

By filing a concurrent Adjustment of Status and obtaining an EAD, you can live and work freely in the United States for any employer. If you want to, you can start your own business or not work at all. Any of these paths are possible under the EB-5 visa—even while you wait for your EB-5 application to be processed.

If you have an H-1B visa or are interested in working in the United States, we invite you to schedule a free consultation to learn more about the EB-5 program. An EB-5 investment can offer you a quick path to more diverse career opportunities and a life of freedom in the United States.

Further Resources for H-1B Workers Considering Other Immigration Options

Economic Policy Institute Report: H-1B Visas and Prevailing Wage Levels

How H-1B Workers in the Tech Industry Can Adjust Their Immigration Status Immediately—Despite Layoffs

Full Interview with Milan, an Indian H-1B worker Who Made an EB-5 Investment

How the EB-5 Visa Offers a Lifeline to H-1B Workers

H-1B Workers Explore the EB-5 Visa Program for Better Prospects