US scrapping 60-day grace period for visa holders could cause 'human displacement & financial ruin': Experts

The US Department of Homeland Security proposal to eliminate the 60-day grace period that allows H-1B workers and certain other legal nonimmigrants to remain in the US after their employment ends and while they find another sponsor might cause more worries, Experts have warned. They maintained that such a measure would cause severe human displacement and loss of highly skilled talent, mostly from India.

The 60-day grace period helped the visa holders to seek another sponsor, change status, or prepare to leave after their employment for which they got the visa comes to an end. It is pertinent to note that Indian nationals are among the largest beneficiaries of H-1B employment visas. They comprise 71 per cent of all successful applicants in the 2024 fiscal year.

“Scrapping the existing 60-day grace period entirely represents a severe regression that directly harms legal immigrants who have contributed significantly to the United States’ technological and economic leadership,” Ajay Jain Bhutoria, a former White House advisor, said in a statement, according to PTI.

Why it matters

American attorney Adrian Pandev pointed out how many start-up founders quit their corporate jobs and utilise the 60-day grace period to file change of status petitions for their new ventures.

“Without it, the employee is incentivised not to mention anything to their current employer until the new petition is filed or even approved. That means the current employer could be finding out they are losing a team member on extremely short notice,” Pandev said in a post on X. “This would impact US employers as much as employees,” he added.

Bhutoria went on to condemn the proposed policy of the Department of Homeland Security. “Eliminating the 60-day grace period is inhumane and unworkable. When a worker faces a sudden termination, 60 days is already dangerously short. Stripping away this protection entirely leaves thousands of law-abiding individuals with zero time to wrap up their lives,” he said.

He urged the South Asian organisations, business leaders, and advocacy groups operating in the United States to prepare for public comments once the rule is officially published in the Federal Register to ensure the administration hears the full impact of this proposal.

It is pertinent to note that during his tenure as advisor to then-President Joe Biden, Bhutoria had proposed extending the grace period from 60 days to 180 days. At that time, he argued that an extension is required, given the reality of corporate hiring practices.

He noted how technical interview rounds and visa transfer paperwork often take months to complete, and hence the 60-day period is not enough. “This proposal strikes at the heart of the South Asian immigrant community and skilled workforce. I urge DHS and the administration to withdraw this proposal immediately and instead adopt a compassionate, pragmatic 180-day grace period that respects human dignity and protects America’s competitive edge,” Bhutoria said.

He noted that hundreds of thousands of South Asian tech, health care and engineering professionals hold H-1B status and eliminating the grace period would create extreme psychological distress, financial ruin, and school disruptions for children raised in the US.

With inputs from PTI.