Individuals can fight H-1B visa revocation tied to employer fraud

A US District Court ruling has opened the door for individual H-1B visa holders to fight cases individually when their visas are at risk of being revoked due to alleged fraud by the employer. The case was filed by 10 Indians whose H-1B visas had been revoked for no fault of theirs.

The 10 Indians challenged the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) as it issued ‘Notice of Intention to Revoke’ only to their employers and not giving them the chance to present their arguments and facts regarding their visa revocation, according to a Times of India report.

The ruling is unprecedented and a shot in the arm for Indian H-1B visa holders because it will allow them to challenge visa revocation when their employers are found guilty of fraud and they have nothing to do with it.

In the case heard in the court for the Western District of Washington, Judge Chun ruled that H-1B visa holders can challenge US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) attempts to revoke their visas if they were not given proper notice and were not involved in the employer’s fraud, said International Legal and Business Services on its website.

The court case involved an H-1B visa holder whose employer was found guilty of visa fraud over 15 years ago.

The USCIS sought to revoke the H-1B visas, even though the fraudulent company no longer employed him.

The H-1B visa holder argued that USCIS violated the Administrative Procedure Act by not providing him with a chance to respond to the allegations before revoking his visa.

Judge Chun agreed and said the visa holder could fight the revocation.

INDIAN NATIONALS SUE OVER H-1B DENIALS

The fight against the USCIS over unilaterally revoking H-1B visas isn’t new.

In August 2023, nearly 70 Indians filed a lawsuit against the US government for unfair visa denials due to employer fraud.

The lawsuit filed by the Indian nationals argues that the USCIS unfairly denied their H-1B visa applications because they were previously employed by companies that engaged in a fraudulent scheme.

The lawsuit says the workers were not aware of the fraud and should not be punished for their employer’s actions.

The workers argue that the USCIS violated their due process rights by not giving them a chance to respond to the allegations before denying their visas. They are asking the court to order the USCIS to reconsider their applications and allow them to respond to any fraud allegations.

“The agency assumed that anybody who had touched these companies was somehow guilty of fraudulent misrepresentations to the US government,” said Wasden Law attorney Jonathan Wasden, representing the Indian nationals in the lawsuit, reported Bloomberg Law.

The lawsuit details the case of Siddhartha Kalavala Venkata, one of the Indian nationals who was denied an H-1B visa.

Venkata worked at Integra through OPT after completing a master’s degree in 2016. Integra was one of the companies later found to be involved in the fraudulent scheme.

“Plaintiff Siddhartha Kalavala Venkata said he was in “complete pain” after learning he couldn’t enter the US,” Wasden said.

“If I made a mistake, I would accept it. It was a mistake made by someone else,” Venkata said in an interview, reported Bloomberg Law.

USCIS TIGHTENS H-1B PROCESS

In an effort to crack down on fraud in the H-1B programme, the USCIS has enacted several updates to the H-1B lottery process for the FY2025 lottery.

The updates target entities who submit duplicate registrations for an individual worker to increase the odds of being selected.

Additionally, the USCIS is proposing requiring contracting firms to complete site visits and provide a greater review of third-party job requirements.