Scale of H-1B Visa Fraud From India Detailed by Former Official

A former U.S. diplomat has claimed that a substantial portion of H-1B visas issued to Indian applicants were obtained through fraud.

Mahvash Siddiqui, who worked as a consular officer at the U.S. consulate in Chennai (formerly Madras) from 2005 to 2007, said on the Center for Immigration Studies’ podcast that she adjudicated roughly 51,000 non-immigrant visa applications, most of them H-1Bs.

She alleged that between 80 and 90 percent of H-1B visa applications from India involved fraudulent documentation or unqualified applicants.

“I would say 80 to 90 percent of the people that I encountered in each of the visa categories, you know, especially the young people between the ages of 20 to 45 that, you know, had very few ties to India, were basically using the non-immigrant visa pipeline to essentially come and work in the United States and never go back home and essentially displace American workers,” Siddiqui said.

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An H-1B visa is a temporary, employment-based visa that permits U.S. companies to employ highly skilled foreign workers in specialized fields, including technology, engineering, and medicine.

Republicans are divided on the H-1B program. Some argue it can displace American workers and be subject to fraud and abuse, while others see it as a means to address labor shortages in industries like technology. Critics often highlight the program’s potential impact on domestic employment.

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Siddiqui described widespread use of forged documents, including degrees, property papers, marriage certificates, fake transcripts, and fake bank statements. She said that certain districts, notably around Hyderabad, were hubs for visa consultancy shops that allegedly sold fraudulent credentials and trained applicants to pass the visa issuance process.

She claims consular officers who tried to raise alarms and deny suspicious applications were pressured by political interventions and orders from above, rendering many anti-fraud efforts ineffective.

“The fraud unit was considered a rogue operation because we were caring for America’s first interests,” Siddiqui said.

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