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She Gave up on H-1B Amid $100K Fee; Now She's Weighing Canada or India
Business Insider • • nation
Key Points:
- Shreya Mishra Reddy, an Indian national and Duke University graduate, struggled to secure an H-1B visa after working at Visa, leading her to leave the US in January 2026 when her student work authorization expired.
- The introduction of a proposed $100,000 fee for companies hiring H-1B workers from abroad, though currently unenforced, has created uncertainty and discouraged her from pursuing US job opportunities.
- Mishra Reddy highlighted the challenges international students face in the US job market, noting that many classmates had to return to India due to limited opportunities, and she founded an online community to support these students.
- Currently in Toronto on a tourist visa with her husband, she is considering whether to settle there or return to India, where she sees promising career prospects in booming startup hubs like Delhi, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru.
- Despite valuing her US education and being accepted to a master's program at the University of Pennsylvania, she opted not to continue due to visa and job market uncertainties, expressing optimism about her future outside the US.
