Employers in the US intended to pay a median salary of $80,000 per annum to high-skilled foreign workers possessing H-1B US visas. This is a significant increase on $69,000, recorded a decade ago, an analysis of new data from US Citizenship and Immigration Services by the Pew Research Center has revealed.
The US government had withheld information about the salaries of H-1B US visa applicants, and since the majority of such applicants receive approval for US visas, the information offers a glimpse at the salaries paid to high-skilled foreign workers living and working in the US. The median salary for H-1B US visa workers in 2016 was greater than that of some American workers in similar, high-skilled professions.
American workers in mathematical and computer jobs were paid a median salary of $75,036 in the 2016 fiscal year, a slight rise on the previous year, and around 60 percent of those applying for H-1B US visas are looking for work in those professions. The H-1B US visa program is the main way that employers hire high-skilled foreign workers in the US.
The program enables companies to hire foreign workers for up to six years in occupations requiring specialized knowledge. It can be further extended if the workers concerned have pending green card applications. Several Congressional bills have been proposed in 2017 to alter the program, and the Trump administration prefers a plan to change immigration policy to favor high-skilled immigrants.