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Bill Gates hails doubling H1-B visas(The Economic Times (India) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)47949085 Bill Gates hails Senate move WASHINGTON: The US Senate on Thursday approved a sweeping immigration Bill that, among other provisions, proposes doubling of the H1-B visas for skilled foreign workers from 65,000 to 115,000. H1-B increase strongly backed by hi-tech industry. Bill Gates hails Senate move The new quotas would kick in starting 2007, once approved by the House of Representatives, whose version of the Bill does not contain the H1-B clause. The Senate Bill also exempts immigrants with certain advanced degrees from H1-B caps. The H1-B increase, strongly backed by the US hi-tech industry which says it was losing competitive edge because of a shortage of workers in the US, was fiercely opposed by domestic protectionist lobbies arguing against foreign labour. Because the House Bill does not have this doubling clause, the scrap is expected to continue to the final stage when the two chambers meet over the next few days to hammer out a compromise. In the meantime though, America's high-tech industry signaled victory with Microsoft's Bill Gates issuing a statement hailing the Senate move. Senate Bill exempts immigrants with certain advanced degrees from H1-B cap. New quota to kick in starting 2007, once approved by House of Representatives ''By passing comprehensive immigration reform legislation today that makes prudent adjustments to the annual H1-B visa and green card caps for high-skilled employees, the US Senate has taken a critical step forward in its important work to ensure that our nation remains the global leader in technology innovation,'' Gates said. While the H1-B provision is of interest to India because of its large high-skilled workforce, it is a minor clause in the larger scheme of things. The Senate Bill proposes the most sweeping immigration reforms in decades, offering means for millions of illegal immigrants to stay on in the US and eventually become citizens. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] |