Trump suspends entry of foreign workers till year end

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump suspended the entry into the United States of certain foreign workers, a move the White House said would help the coronavirus-battered economy.

Trump issued a presidential proclamation that temporarily blocks foreign workers entering on H-1B visas for skilled employees, and L visas for managers and specialised workers being transferred within a company.  He also blocked those entering on H-2B seasonal worker visas, used by landscapers and other industries.

The visa suspension, which takes effect on Wednesday until the end of the year, will open up 525,000 jobs for US workers, a senior administration official told local reporters, adding the move was geared at “getting Americans back to work as quickly as possible.” 

The immediate effects of the proclamation are likely to be limited, as US consulates around the world remain closed for routine visa processing. The proclamation exempts those already in the United States, as well as valid visa holders abroad, but they must have an official travel document that permits entry into the country.

The measure also exempts food supply chain workers and people whose entry is deemed in the national interest. The suspension will include work-authorized J visas for cultural exchange opportunities as well as visas for the spouses of H-1B workers.

Trump is running for re-election on 3rd November and has made his tough immigration stance a central pitch to voters, although the coronavirus, faltering economy and nationwide protests over police brutality have overshadowed the issue.

The president has faced pressure to restrict work visas from groups that seek lower levels of immigration. H-2B visas, which were included in the suspension, have been used by Trump owned-businesses, including his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida. Many business groups were lobbying against a temporary visa ban before it was announced.

Trump also renewed a proclamation that blocks some foreigners from permanent residence in the United States, extending that measure until the end of the year. The visa suspension issued narrows an exemption for medical workers in Trump’s April ruling to include only people working on coronavirus research and care.

US Citizenship and Immigration Services said there were 15,269 petitions for H-1B visas in healthcare-related jobs across the United States in fiscal year 2019. The Trump administration will make several other moves to tighten rules around temporary work visas.

The administration plans to rework the H-1B visa program so that the 85,000 visas available each year go to the highest-paid applicants, instead of the current lottery system. It also plans to issue rules making it harder for companies to use the H-1B visa program to train foreign workers to perform the same job in another country.

The Trump administration is also taking steps to limit work permits for asylum-seekers, finalising a regulation to remove a requirement to process such permits within 30 days. A separate asylum measure set to be finalised on Friday would greatly limit asylum seekers’ access to work permits.