Troubles mount! One in six NRIs on H-1B visas feel threat of US deportation; many thinking of returning to India: Poll

H-1B visa bother: A rising quantity of Indian professionals in the US on H-1B visas are going through an sudden and alarming threat of deportation touchdown on their doorsteps earlier than the official 60-day grace interval even runs out. Laid off and staring down the barrel of a potential everlasting US ban, many say it appears like a ticking time bomb.According to a ballot of 1,584 verified professionals carried out on the nameless office app Blind between August 6 and August 8, 2025, one in six (16%) stated they or somebody they know has acquired a Notice to Appear (NTA) throughout the grace interval after being laid off.Under regular guidelines, H-1B staff have 60 days to discover a new employer or change visa standing after job loss. But since mid-2025, studies have emerged of NTAs being issued inside as little as two weeks, labelling recipients “out of status.”“Multiple cases where NTAs were sent in 2 weeks.” a Meta person wrote on Blind.“Immigration lawyers now advise leaving as soon as possible after [the] job ends otherwise you risk a permanent ban from the US,” the person added.This sudden escalation is forcing many to rethink long-term plans.Between July 28 and August 8, 2025, office neighborhood app Blind surveyed 2,089 verified Indian professionals in the US on work visas comparable to H-1B and L1, revealing deep considerations about job safety and the long run of US immigration.In the survey of 2,089 verified Indian professionals, 45% stated they might return to India if pressured to go away, 26% would transfer to one other nation, and 29% had been uncertain.

What are NRIs greatest considerations about leaving US?

When requested about their greatest considerations over leaving the US, respondents cited a major pay minimize (25%), decrease high quality of life (24%), cultural or household adjustment (13%), and fewer job alternatives (10%). Interestingly, 28% stated they might don’t have any considerations and could be open to leaving.On whether or not they would nonetheless go for a US work visa if given the possibility once more, solely 35% stated “yes.”While 27% had been uncertain and 38% stated “no,” pointing to a transparent shift in how Indian professionals view the long-term worth of immigrating to the US.

What is driving this modification?

Real experiences are driving this modification. More than one in three respondents (35%) stated they or somebody shut to them had been pressured to go away the US after dropping a job whereas on a piece visa, usually underneath the looming threat of deportation through the transient grace interval.The findings counsel a rising openness to leaving the US, with many indicating they might return to India if it got here to that.

US President Donald Trump’s latest name for US firms to “stop hiring in India” has sparked a pointy divide in opinion. Among US-based professionals, 63% felt the transfer may benefit their firms, whereas 69% of India-based respondents believed it will harm their corporations.When requested in the event that they or somebody shut to them had ever been pressured to go away the US after being laid off, 10% stated it occurred to them instantly, 25% stated it occurred to somebody shut, and 65% stated no.The rising anxieties replicate a broader shift in the notion of the H-1B pathway, as soon as seen as a golden ticket to American alternatives, now more and more considered as a high-risk gamble.