Comment by rayiner

Comment by rayiner 5 hours ago

The bigger problem with the H1B system is family reunification. 65,000 H1B visas a year is not that many. But because H1B is a path to citizenship in practice, just one skilled worker eventually will bring in many more family members who aren’t filtered for skills.

When we came to the U.S. in 1989–on my dad’s H1 visa—there were under 10,000 Bangladeshis in the country. Today, there are 270,000. Those aren’t 270,000 highly skilled and highly motivated workers. They’re here based on chain migration from handful of original skilled workers.

richard___ 4 hours ago

How does this work, exactly? What is the law that allows relatives of H1B to become citizens?

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rayiner 18 minutes ago

On paper, H1B is a temporary worker program that requires non-immigrant intent. In practice, there is a legal fiction called “dual intent” that allows H1Bs to apply for a green card without violating the requirement of non-immigrant intent. Once a permanent resident, they can sponsor spouses and adult children for permanent residency. Once a citizen, they can sponsor parents and siblings.
The U.S. gave my dad an H1 visa, which resulted in 8 other Bangladeshis moving to the U.S. If my mom wasn’t antisocial, she could’ve sponsored her dozen siblings, who could’ve then sponsored their children. That’s how you end up with ethnic enclaves like Little Bangladesh.

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JuniperMesos 3 hours ago

In the case of the H1-B visa holder's children, the Birthright Citizenship Clause of the 14th amendment.

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cft 4 hours ago

Basic US immigration law: once a permanent resident or a citizen, a former H1B holder can bring his relatives, like any US citizen

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