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US President Donald Trump’s latest immigration move has sent shockwaves through the global tech industry. The American president signed a proclamation imposing a $100,000 annual fee on every H-1B visa application on Friday-- a decision critics say could cripple America’s innovation engine while simultaneously boosting India’s tech growth story.

Former G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant was quick to weigh in, calling the move a self-goal for Washington. “Donald Trump's $100,000 H-1B fee will choke US innovation, and turbocharge India's. By slamming the door on global talent, America pushes the next wave of labs, patents, innovation and startups to Bangalore and Hyderabad, Pune and Gurgaon,” Kant posted on X.

He stressed that the change gives India’s best minds an opportunity to contribute to the country’s progress. “America's loss will be India's gain,” he added.

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Entrepreneur and investor Kunal Bahl echoed that view, predicting a reverse migration of highly skilled professionals. “Because of the new H1-B rules, a tremendous number of talented individuals are going to be headed back to India. It will no doubt be tough in the beginning to move base, but will work out for them given the tremendous opportunities in India,” he wrote in his post.

The White House defended the move as necessary to protect local jobs. Signing the proclamation, Trump declared: “We need workers. We need great workers, and this pretty much ensures that.”

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the policy would “discourage companies from hiring foreign workers,” while White House staff secretary Will Scharf called H-1B “one of the most abused visa systems.”

“What this proclamation will do is raise the fee that companies pay to sponsor H-1B applicants to $100,000. This will ensure that the people they're bringing in are actually very highly skilled and that they're not replaceable by American workers,” Scharf said.

In a parallel move, Trump also announced a new “gold card” visa programme, offering residency for $1 million to individuals and $2 million to corporations.

The H-1B visa, introduced in 1990, allows US employers to hire foreign professionals with specialised skills --mainly in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). It is valid for three years and can be extended to six. Indians are the largest beneficiaries of this visa, accounting for 71 per cent of approvals last year, followed by China at 11.7 per cent.

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