US work visa amendment to benefit recruiters
A US visa amendment, which will allow spouses of H-1B (highly skilled) visas to gain their own employment, will be beneficial for recruiters, those in the industry say.
PageGroup regional managing director (UK) Nicholas Kirk told Recruiter allowing UK candidates to enter the US workplace “will facilitate growth in many businesses, especially recruitment consultancies”.
He continued: “PageGroup has over 100 consultants relocating internationally on an annual basis, but who knows, this could potentially double within a year.”
Faststream Recruitment Group chief executive Mark Charman told Recruiter the “time and complexity involved with bringing talent in from outside the US is off-putting”.
The amendment though would increase the attractiveness of the US as a location for candidates considering international relocation, he said.
James Lafferty, who is about to open and lead engineering and IT recruiter Austin Fraser's first US office in Texas told Recruiter the amendment made the opening process easier as it reduced risk for British employees moving to Texas.
He said it was "fantastic news for the economy and will do wonders to diversify workforces in America.
“As a UK business with a US presence, we promote social mobility and give our employees the opportunity to move abroad. With the new rule in place this will encourage a more global workforce that isn't restricted to geographical location."
US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) director León Rodríguez announced this week [24 February] that as of 26 May, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) would allow people on H-4 visas (dependent spouse of someone on a highly skilled worker visa) to seek employment.
He said in a statement: “Allowing the spouses of these visa holders to legally work in the US makes perfect sense.
“It helps US businesses keep their highly skilled workers by increasing the chances these workers will choose to stay in this country during the transition from temporary workers to permanent residents.”
USCIS has estimated the number of individuals eligible to apply for employment under this amendment could be as high as 179,600 in the first year and 55,000 annually in subsequent years.
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