Priced Out Talent
The Statesman | 23 September 2025They have filled critical gaps in sectors ranging from software to biomedical research, contributing to innovations that have defined the modern economy. The new policy, which requires companies to pay an additional $100,000 every year for up to six years, changes the calculus entirely. Hiring a single foreign professional could now mean a government surcharge of more than half a million dollars over the duration of a visa. Large technology firms with deep pockets might grudgingly absorb the cost for a handful of exceptional recruits. But smaller start-ups and mid-sized firms, which have often turned to global talent precisely because they cannot find or afford local workers, will be pushed out of the game. The policy thus risks transforming a merit-based pathway into a privilege of the richest corporations, narrowing the diversity and dynamism that have powered America’s technological edge. For India, the stakes are high.
The country supplies the majority of applicants to this programme, and countless families have planned their futures around the prospect of working in the United States. An abrupt escalation in costs will disrupt those plans, forcing many to reconsider career paths and migration strategies. Domestic companies that have used US postings as a training ground for their best engineers may also rethink their models, with ripple effects on salaries and recruitment here at home. The irony is that America itself may lose more than it gains. By pricing out promising minds, the policy invites companies to move their research centres and development hubs to more welcoming jurisdictions. Nations from Canada to Singapore have been waiting for such an opening, ready to offer competitive visas and stable pathways to permanent residence.
If talent is indeed the oil of the twenty-first century, the United States is choosing to tax the well until it runs dry, almost as if it were a bankrupt economy desperate for funds and not the world’s richest country. India must respond with both caution and creativity. Strengthening our own innovation ecosystem, streamlining immigration for returning professionals, and forging partnerships with alternative destinations can turn a challenge into an opportunity. The world’s brightest minds will always seek the best place to build their dreams. If America raises the price of entry so high, we should be ready to welcome them home.
