Posted on January 11, 2019

Trump Promises Pathway to Citizenship for High-Skill ‘H1-B’ Visa Holders

Geoff Earle, Daily Mail, January 11, 2019

President Donald Trump flashed his softer side on Twitter, touting changes to a high-tech visa program that he said would bring more certainty and a ‘potential path to citizenship.’

His tweet came hours after he visited the southern border and once again stressed crime, drugs, and gang mayhem in his push for a $5.7 billion border wall amid a continued government shutdown.

The president said changes to the ‘H1-b’ program were coming ‘soon.’

‘H1-B holders in the United States can rest assured that changes are soon coming which will bring both simplicity and certainty to your stay, including a potential path to citizenship,’ Trump tweeted.

‘We want to encourage talented and highly skilled people to pursue career options in the U.S.’, the president added.

Trump didn’t give specifics on when the changes were coming, what they would be, or whether they were administrative changes or would require congressional approval. Congress must authorize the number of visas that can be given out each year.

Even as Trump has dug in on a wall, he for weeks has been stressing that the U.S. needs workers amid the ongoing economic expansion.

Current high-tech visas already offer a potential path to citizenship, however. Employers who have workers on an H1-b can sponsor them for a green card, which can eventually lead to citizenship.

Trump’s stated push for high-tech visas comes after her surrounded himself with Border Patrol and law enforcement on a trip to Texas at the southern border. He held an event with seized drugs, cash, and weapons, and pressed the safety risk of illegal immigration at the border.

He continues to demand spending on a steel border barrier. The government shutdown hit its 21st day Friday.