The H-1B Flip-Flop: Trump’s Great Indian U-Turn
Just months after a $100K H-1B fee shock, Trump does a complete 180
The H-1B Flip-Flop: Trump’s Great Indian U-Turn. For much of his second term, President Donald Trump’s administration treated Indian tech workers as a target of his “America First” immigration agenda. In September 2025, Trump signed a proclamation imposing a $100,000 fee on H-1B visa petitions, a move that triggered chaos at airports as Indian visa holders scrambled to return to the US before the rule took effect.
India’s foreign ministry warned the policy was “likely to have humanitarian consequences,” given that Indian nationals account for 71% of H-1B visa recipients and over 80% of computer-related H-1B roles go to Indian workers.
Earlier this year, a Trump-aligned lawmaker went further still, introducing the “End H-1B Visa Abuse Act of 2026” to halt the program for three years and slash the annual cap to 25,000.
By_ Dr. Namrata Mishra Tiwari, Chief Editor http://indiainput.com
The rhetoric matched the policy. Trump’s restrictionist wing, including allies who argued American culture had “venerated mediocrity over excellence,” pushed a narrative that skilled foreign workers, many of them Indian, were displacing American employees and that the door to outsiders should close.
Trump Loved Them,
Trump Banned Them,
Trump Loves Them Again?
The Whiplash Diplomacy
That posture appears to have shifted dramatically in June 2026. Days after the US Supreme Court struck down the $100,000 H-1B fee proposal, Trump met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Evian, France — their first in-person meeting in 16 months, and a notably warmer one than the moment suggested it might be, coming just days after a US strike killed Indian sailors in the Gulf of Oman.
Asked directly whether highly skilled Indians would continue to find opportunities in the US, Trump didn’t hedge. “Highly skilled Indians will get more opportunities,” he said. He went further in a separate exchange, noting America has “always had tremendous relationships in terms of employment with India” and calling Indians “very talented people.”
Charm Offensive
The charm offensive extended to Modi personally. Trump called him “the most beautiful-looking man,” adding he’s “as tough as he’s a killer” at the negotiating table, and even pledged that if anybody attacks India, “we’re going to be there now” — so long as Modi remains in charge.
The pivot lines up with practical incentives: Trump said the US is “very close” to a trade deal with India, and easing tension over H-1B visas removes a major irritant just as both sides try to close that agreement.
Policy relief or Diplomatic Theater
For Indian techies, the whiplash is familiar. Trump’s first term also swung between threatening H-1B crackdowns and insisting he’d “always liked the visas.”
Whether this latest charm offensive translates into durable policy relief, or is simply diplomatic theater ahead of a trade deal, remains to be seen — H-1B fees, caps, and eligibility rules are still subject to executive and congressional action that could change again.
Source :
http://www.indianembassyusa.gov.in
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