Wipro says H-1B visa fee hike has no impact as 80% of US workforce are locals

India’s fourth-largest information technology (IT) services company Wipro said the recent hike in H-1B visa fees will have no impact on its business, as the company has already localised a majority of its workforce in the United States.

Amid changes in the US immigration policy, including a 1,000 per cent fee hike on H-1B visas to $100,000 annually, Wipro CEO and Managing Director Srinivas Pallia said, “H-1B has no impact on us. We are not dependent on H-1B visas.”

Speaking at the company’s post-results press conference, Chief Human Resources Officer Saurabh Govil added, “Over the last few years, we have had a very focused and purposeful approach towards localisation. Nearly 80 per cent of our US employee base are locals.”

H-1B visas are non-immigrant visas that allow US companies to em