20-25% of H-1B visa holders in US are frauds, claims Indian-American investor

Silicon Valley investor Vivek Wadhwa has voiced concerns that a significant portion of individuals entering the United States on H-1B visas may be misrepresenting their qualifications. In a podcast interview, Wadhwa estimated that approximately 20 to 25 percent of H-1B visa holders are "frauds," suggesting they possess fake degrees or inflated resumes.

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See, what happens is that with every government program, there’s also corruption. First of all, you have people faking their resumes. So you have these body shops who bring people in, and it’s cheap labor. So it’s a fact. It happens … Probably about 20-25 per cent of the people who come in on H-1B visas fall in that category.

Wadhwa pointed to "body shops," which are staffing companies that recruit H-1B workers for client firms. He explained that these agencies often manipulate resumes and qualifications to secure visas for individuals, effectively providing cheap labor. "It's a fact. It happens," Wadhwa stated, emphasizing that the government does not meticulously validate every degree from every country.

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First of all, you only give it to companies that are trustworthy and reliable, not the body shops. This is where the problem happens. You got these body shops who bring them in, who make up resumes, who make up qualifications. The government isn’t going to validate every degree in every country.

To address this issue, Wadhwa suggested that U.S. recruiters should more carefully scrutinize applications. He recommended prioritizing companies that are "trustworthy and reliable" and avoiding the "body shops" that he believes are central to the problem. He argued that these intermediaries are the ones fabricating qualifications to bring in H-1B workers.

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But he said he won't recommend increasing H-1B visa numbers for India but he wants Green Card allocation to go up.

While critical of the current abuse within the H-1B system, Wadhwa expressed support for the visa program itself. However, he does not advocate for an increase in H-1B visa numbers for India. Instead, he called for a substantial increase in Green Card allocations. Wadhwa highlighted the drastic increase in waiting times for Green Cards, noting his own experience of an 18-month wait contrasted with the current 70-year backlog. He believes this lengthy wait leaves H-1B visa holders in "limbo," unable to change employers without restarting their Green Card process, a situation that benefits employers who can offer lower wages and retain staff.

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He said when he applied for a Green Card, he had to wait for only 18 months but now the waiting time is 70 years.