European teens 4x likelier to get US summer work visa than graduates getting H-1B visas

Employers use H-1B visas to hire foreign-born scientists, engineers and other highly skilled individuals. Obtaining H-1B status is typically the only practical way a high-skilled foreign national, including an international student, can work long term in the United States. H-1B visa registration for FY2026 opened on March 7, 2025, and will run until March 24, 2025.

ALSO READ: H-1B visa: How the US policy shift may not rock the boat for Indian engineers

The analysis found that getting any other major visa is much easier than an H-1B visa. Although only 20% of new H-1B applications turn into workers under the 85,000 limit, the U.S. government approved 72% of individuals who applied for visitor visas (B1/B2) in FY 2024 and 89% of J-1 visas, which include exchange visitors such as researchers and summer workers.

(Join our ETNRI WhatsApp channel for all the latest updates)


Due to the 85,000 numerical ceiling, getting permission to sponsor a highly skilled worker is arduous. “The low annual limit on new H-1B petitions makes the category the most restrictive visa in the U.S. immigration system,” according to a new National Foundation for American Policy analysis. “In FY 2025, employers filed at least 423,028 eligible H-1B registrations, but USICS could only allow 85,000 new foreign nationals to obtain H-1B status under the annual limit, an approval rate of only 20%.”

• Artificial Intelligence(AI)

  Java Programming with ChatGPT: Learn using Generative AI

  By — Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer

• Artificial