Amazon allows Indian employees to work but with THESE conditions amid H-1B visa
Amazon offered them an alternative, but with various restrictions. The major technology company offered its employees who have been staying in India since December 13 to work remotely until March 2. Amazon placed restrictions on work including troubleshooting, testing, and even documenting the code.
Amazon allows employees to work remotely
In big news for Indian workers stranded in India due to delays in H-1B visa processing, Amazon has offered them an alternative with several restrictions. According to Business Insider, the major technology company offered its employees staying in India from December 13 to work remotely until March 2. However, the offer comes with a restriction that they cannot code, make any important decisions, take part in contracts or communicate with customers while working remotely.
Amazon has placed restrictions on work such as troubleshooting, testing, and even documenting code that are required by local laws. They are also not allowed to visit Amazon offices, sign contracts, hire anyone, or manage relationships with sellers and partners. All major decision-making processes and approvals must take place outside India.
For those working in technical roles, these restrictions raise serious concerns about productivity. “Seventy to eighty percent of my job is coding, testing, deploying and documenting,” an Amazon software engineer told Business Insider, emphasizing that the rule is not enforceable.
US increases H-1B visa
In a significant US immigration move, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced an increase in premium processing fees for many immigration benefits, including the H-1B visa. The new rates will come into force from March 1, 2026.
Premium processing is an optional service offered by USCIS that allows petitioners to receive faster decisions on certain immigration petitions. With this additional fee, USCIS guarantees that a decision will be made within a certain time frame, usually 15 calendar days. Under the new fee schedule, USCIS has increased premium processing fees for several key visa and employment-based immigration categories, including Form I-129 – H-2B and R-1 categories, which apply to H-2B: Temporary nonfarm workers, R-1: Religious workers. The old fee was $1,685 with the addition of the premium transaction fee, the New fee is $1,780 with a $95 increase.
