Immigration experts say Indians are ‘the new oil, coal or gas’ amid H-1B controversy; Laura Ingraham responds
US President Donald Trump raises certain fees by $100,000 H-1B visa The layoffs sparked debate among industry representatives, with many expressing their views on the impact on the U.S. economy.
Xavier Fernandes Founder migrant Y-Axis said the policy could do more harm than good to the United States.
“It’s definitely a loss for the United States. A lot of CEOs are from Hyderabad. It’s just a breeding ground for technology,” Fernandez told CBS News on the Indian IT industry and H-1B visas.
according to U.S. citizenship and immigration services predict that by 2024, more than 70% of H-1B visa holders will be from India.
“Indians are the new oil, coal or gas, the people who run modern industry,” Fernandez said.
Asked whether similar talent was available in the United States, he responded: “It’s not something you can manufacture. It’s not something you can get locally.”
His comments drew criticism from Fox News host Laura Ingraham, who claimed the hiring practices amounted to “industrial-scale fraud” and cost American workers jobs and wages. This statement came despite Trump himself admitting that “you have to bring in talent, too.”
In an interview with Trump, Ingraham claimed that the United States has “a lot of talented people,” to which the president responded, “No, you don’t… You don’t have certain talents that people have to learn.” “
The immigration expert further mentioned that the new policy may affect innovation in the United States, saying “many Indians will stay and build in India.”
H1-B visa fee payment standards
Newly implemented fees apply in certain circumstances:
• Employers recruiting employees from abroad through consular processing are obligated to pay $100,000
• Organizations that employ foreign nationals already in the United States on different visas are exempt from this fee
H-1B visa applications drop
Meanwhile, the number of H-1B applications dropped after the new fees were implemented.
Recent statistics from the U.S. Department of Labor show a significant drop in H-1B petitions from major technology companies after the fee was enforced.
The number of certification applications from one of the largest sponsors of H-1B visas, including Apple, Google, Meta and Microsoft, declined compared to the previous year.
The number of applications for both Meta and Google dropped by about 50%.
In comparison, Nvidia was the only company to report growth, with filings increasing from 369 in the first quarter of 2025 to 434 in the first quarter of 2026.
The company’s CEO Jensen Huang said that Nvidia will continue to hire H-1B employees despite the increase in costs.
