New H-1B policy sparks chaos, forces visa holders to return to US overnight

Workers, employees, doctors and other professionals on H-1B visas were forced to hastily abandon their foreign travel plans over the weekend and rush back to the US after President Donald Trump signed an executive order imposing new and ridiculously high visa fees, heightening his wide-ranging immigration crackdown.

Tech companies and banks sent urgent memos to employees, advising them to return before a deadline of 12:01 a.m. EDT on Sunday (04:01 GMT) if they were away from the US, and to refrain from traveling internationally till further notice.

Amid the disarray, a White House official clarified on Saturday, however, that the order applied only to new applicants and not holders of existing visas or those seeking renewals, addressing some of the confusion over who would be affected. Clarifications continued coming in as of Monday, with Bloomberg reporting that doctors and medical professionals may be exempted from paying the $100,000 visa fee. 

While signing the order, Donald Trump had stated that this move was aimed at ensuring that the foreign talent brought in to the US were really highly skilled and not just low-cost alternates to American employees.

Companies including Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet and Goldman Sachs were among those that sent urgent emails to their employees with travel advisories.

Amazon gave guidance to staff on Saturday, after clarity emerged on who would be impacted, that no action was required for staff currently holding H-1B visas, according to a source who had viewed an internal portal. Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside business hours.

The new policy garnered a mixed response. For instance, it drew support from Netflix Chairman Reed Hastings, who said in a social media post that it will eliminate the need for the lottery and provide more certainty for those who get the H-1B visas. On the other hand, in light of the policy's chaotic introduction, the US Chamber of Commerce issued a short statement wherein it said it was concerned about the impact on employees, their families and employers.

On the popular Chinese social media app Rednote, people on H-1B visas shared their experiences of having to rush back to the US—in some cases just hours after landing in China or another country.

"My feelings are a mix of disappointment, sadness, and frustration," said one woman in a post with a user handle "Emily's Life in NY."

The woman said she had boarded a United Airlines flight from New York to Paris, and it had already started taxiing as she grew concerned over whether she'd be able to return to the US. But after some back-and-forth with the airline, the captain agreed to return to the gate to let her off the aircraft. Similar situations were depicted in multiple videos from different aircraft shared on social media.

(Cover via VCG, with input from Reuters)