US court overthrows H-1B visa program changes, says administration’s causes unjustified

PUNE: A US court has overturned the last two changes to the H-1B visa programme brought in by the administration of US President Donald Trump that would have significantly restricted the ability of US companies to hire foreign workers.

Judge Jeffrey White of the US District Court of Northern California said that the unemployment crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic was not ‘good cause’ for the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and US Department of Labor (DOL) to bypass the administrative requirements needed when issuing the two Interim Final Rules.

The rules had been notified without public comments and notice period, violating the Administrative Procedure Act.