New Delhi: At a time when the US-tariff row has impacted the Indian exports and the new US H-1B visa application fee for fresh petitions has created uncertainty amongst the IT professionals, JPMorgan Chase & Co. has described India as a “bright spot” in a difficult global economic environment.
Sjoerd Leenart, the bank’s top executive for JP Morgan, placed its bet on India owing to the country’s strong domestic growth and limited dependence on exports.
“Sure, it has its share of issues — the tariffs, now the H1B visa issues. But overall it has a strong hand to play,” Leenart said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. The US-based bank expressed confidence to withstand the tariff impact saying, the country can navigate the tariff challenges, “and will land in a good place,” he added.
International IT giants such as Microsoft and JP Morgan have already directed their employees holding H-1B and H-4 visa holders, who are placed outside the United States currently, to return to the country before the September 21 deadline. JP Morgan has asked the H-1B visa holder to avoid international travel until further notice.
H-1B visa fees likely to hurt US more than India: GTRI
Meanwhile, think tank GTRI said the decision of the US President Donald Trump to hike H-1B visa fees to USD 100,000 per worker is likely to hurt the United States more than India.
Indian IT companies already employ 50-80 per cent locals in the US.
“So the measure won’t create many new jobs. Instead, it will make hiring Indians on-site costlier than hiring locals,” the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said.
Explaining further, it said, an IT manager with five years’ experience earns USD 120,000-150,000 in the US, versus 40 per cent less on H-1B and 80 per cent less in India.
“Faced with this huge fee, firms will accelerate offshoring, doing more work remotely from India. That means fewer H-1B petitions, less local hiring, higher project costs for US clients, and slower innovation,” GTRI Founder Ajay Srivastava said.
President Donald Trump on September 19, 2025 signed a proclamation raising the fee on the visas used by companies to hire workers, including from India, to live and work in the US.