Biden’s Plans for H1Bs 2020 was another contentious year for the U.S. immigration debate. This was no surprise, given the Covid crisis, its related economic downturn, and the election. The result was more uncertainty about the H1B visa program, especially for those in it. We’ll have a new administration this upcoming January.

1. Biden’s Plans for H1Bs
2020 was another contentious year for the U.S. immigration debate. This was no surprise, given
the Covid crisis, its related economic downturn, and the election. The result was more
uncertainty about the H1B visa program, especially for those in it. We’ll have a new
administration this upcoming January. We’ve read Joe Biden’s immigration plan, and have
highlighted the sections about H1Bs. How will his plan change the government’s approach to
H1Bs? We’ll break it down below.
Quick note: like all campaign literature, we can’t take this plan as a road map for the future. The
President of the United States has limited power to change immigration standards or policies
without Congress. The courts struck down most of the Trump Administration’s attempts to do
this. The Biden Administration could run into the same issue.
SECTION 1
“Biden will work with Congress to first reform temporary visas to establish a wage-based
allocation process and establish enforcement mechanisms to ensure they are aligned with the
labor market and not used to undermine wages.”

2. This policy is important for making sure H1B holders aren’t paid below market value, which
would be exploitative to them and drives down American wages. It’s also a policy that already
exists.
We have wage-based standards and enforcement mechanisms in this direction. They may not be
perfect, but there’s nothing in this section to suggest this new policy would be any more
effective. It’s also not as relevant as many would believe, as H1B holders make an average
of 2.8% more than their American counterparts. It’s both a solution that’s already in place and
for a problem that no longer exists like it used to.
SECTION 2
“Then, Biden will support expanding the number of high-skilled visas and eliminating the limits
on employment-based visas by country, which create unacceptably long backlogs.”
The first part addresses the 85,000 H1B visas that are issued every year. It sounds like a big
number, but over 201,000 applications were filed in 2020. Skeptics may say they’re fine with
these numbers. Less H1Bs means more jobs for Americans, right?
Not so much. While total unemployment is up this year, engineering unemployment sits at 3.5%.
The number is so low because of the United States’s technical skills shortage. We don’t have
the people we need to fill important positions in the technology sector. If this continues, more
work will move overseas. Bringing in more engineers, IT professionals, etc. is key to the United
States remaining a high-tech leader.
The second part speaks to the per-country immigration limits that have made the wait for a Green
Card so long, especially for Indian immigrants. Over 1,000,000 Indian immigrants have been
approved for a Green Card, but have to live in legal limbo for the 10+ years it’s taking to get one.
These are people who are working here, paying taxes, and building a life. The good news is the
Senate passed a bipartisan bill in the first week of December to ease this restriction. This is
one part of Biden’s plan taking shape before he’s even in the office.
SECTION 3
“As president, Biden will work with Congress to increase the number of visas awarded for
permanent, employment-based immigration—and promote mechanisms to temporarily reduce
the number of visas during times of high U.S. unemployment.”
The first part sounds like something that would impact H1Bs. Not so much. While immigrants
are using H1Bs in their immigration process, the visa itself is still categorized for temporary,
non-immigrant employment. This doesn’t apply, due to that technicality.

3. It does highlight the need for a new program covering permanent immigration in the STEM
fields. There isn’t one right now, and the H1B visa has been used as a band-aid. We need a
process designed for this purpose, so it can be fair to the immigrants, their employers, and the job
market.
Referring to the reduction of visas during high unemployment, it’s not relevant to our current
situation. As mentioned, the Covid crisis has not hit the tech sector in the same way as others.
This might be different in future downturns. For the current market, this is a solution in search of
a problem.
SECTION 4
“He will also exempt from any cap recent graduates of PhD programs in STEM fields in the U.S.
who are poised to make some of the most important contributions to the world economy. Biden
believes that foreign graduates of a U.S. doctoral program should be given a green card with
their degree and that losing these highly trained workers to foreign economies is a disservice to
our own economic competitiveness.”
This would be a change to our current system, but not as large as it may seem. PhD graduates are
a small slice of the H1B picture. It may encourage more to come to the U.S., which would be a
good thing.
While this wouldn’t change much in the current market, they’re thinking in the right direction.
As stated before, we need a program that applies to any who receive a STEM degree from a U.S.
school. It might not be getting an immediate Green Card, but it must pave a clear, inexpensive
path for those in it.
It should be noted this would be a difficult change to get through the legislature. The American
public isn’t well-educated on the issue, and politicians can still get a lot of mileage out of
fighting these programs to “protect American jobs.” There needs to be a big push to educate the
public on what’s going on.
SECTION 5
“The U.S. immigration system must guard against economy-wide wage cuts due to exploitation
of foreign workers by unscrupulous employers who undercut the system by hiring immigrant
workers below the market rate or go outside the immigration system to find workers. Biden will
work with Congress to ensure that employers are not taking advantage of immigrant workers and
that U.S. citizen workers are not being undercut by employers who don’t play by the rules. Biden
will also work to ensure employers have the right tools to certify their workers’ employment
status and will restore the focus on abusive employers instead of on the vulnerable workers they
are exploiting.”

4. While this section primarily targets employers who hire undocumented workers, it does have
ramifications for H1Bs. While there have been major improvements, it would be naive to assume
H1B abuses don’t still occur. What this section discusses is making the consequences land more
on the employer than the immigrants themselves. This would be a positive change, as it’s better
to punish the exploiters than the exploited.
As you might expect from a Presidential campaign, the Biden plan includes a lot of big ideas.
Starting in January, we’ll see where they fall in his priorities, and what he can get through the
legislature.
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