India and WTO Negotiate for More Visas

The Economic Times of India recently reported that India is awaiting response from the United States regarding its proposal to approve 130,000 more H1-B visas, increasing the total to 195,000. India made a formal request to the World Trade Organization (WTO) to this effect.

The extra visas come in reaction to the steadily increasing number of Indian professionals in the healthcare, technology, and education fields. The US temporarily increased the current quota of 65,000 by 20,000 for the current year to meet the exceptionally high demand.

In exchange for the additional visas, India would “favorably consider demand” from Europe and the United States for a greater share of the market for industrial goods, services, and agriculture, according to sources. The issue of visas is important to the Indian government, along with tariff peaks, export subsidies, and Nama- non-agricultural market access.

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