President Donald Trump’s ongoing crackdown on US visas continues to cause trouble for overseas immigrants who want to come to the US, with an array of executive orders targeting both L1 and H-1B US visas, along with a variety of others.
Although Australians have been fortunate, compared to nationals from other nations, due to the E3 US visa scheme enabling graduate level specialty workers to go to the US, a benefit not given to some other countries, they too have become vulnerable to the new restrictions on H-1B and L1 US visas. The change has resulted in an increasing number of tourists from Australia being stopped at US borders across the nation and turned away. There are predictions that soon, many Australian citizens will no longer be able to work in the US because of the shakeup faced by the US visa system under the Trump administration.
Foreign nationals have struggled to gain access to the US since Trump was sworn in as US President earlier this year, despite the rules for entry into the country having not yet been officially changed.
Trump’s desire for the US to buy American, and hire American, will almost certainly work against the ability of those holding Australian visas to find steady work in the US. The J1 visa program is already facing review and it is expected that foreigners will be barred from gaining US visas as summer camp counselors, trainees, interns, and tourist workers.