Experts warn that proposed regulatory changes to the H-1B visa program could undermine the goals of a recent executive order on artificial intelligence (AI) issued by the White House. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released a proposal last year to modernize the specialty occupation visa, but if the final version of the rule mirrors the proposal, it could make it more difficult to hire talent for emerging tech fields like AI, according to over 1,300 public comments submitted on the proposal.
The proposed changes include overhauling the H-1B lottery system, modifying the definition of a “specialty occupation,” and adding new eligibility criteria. These changes will hamper hiring in interdisciplinary fields like AI and business intelligence, which require a range of knowledge and backgrounds. Experts argue that such restrictions do not align with current market practices or the needs of employers.
These proposed changes to the H-1B program were released at the same time that President Joe Biden issued an executive order promoting the addition of foreign talent with essential expertise in AI. The order aimed to lower visa barriers for researchers and students in critical new fields, including AI. However, the proposed changes to the H-1B program could hinder the administration’s policy vision on AI.
The H-1B program is crucial for employers in the tech industry to bring in international workers with specialized knowledge, but the current annual allocation of 85,000 visas falls short of demand. The USCIS acknowledges attempts to manipulate the system and cheat the lottery but did not comment on the feedback regarding the proposed changes.
Critics argue that the proposed changes create unnecessary hurdles for employers and contradict the goals set by the executive order. They claim that the new eligibility standards would lead to increased scrutiny and denials of H-1B petitions, as well as narrower interpretations of eligibility in the future.
Industry advocates emphasize the need for streamlined access to visas and an increase in the number of visas available for foreign talent in order to foster innovation and maintain competitiveness in emerging tech fields like AI.
The source of the article is from the blog coletivometranca.com.br