Chennai got 220,000 H-1B visas: US economist alleges massive fraud in India's cap

Former US Representative and economist Dr Dave Brat has alleged rampant fraud in the H-1B visa system, claiming on a podcast that one Indian district secured more than double the total number of visas legally permitted nationwide. Brat's remarks have reignited scrutiny of the programme at a time when the Trump administration is intensifying its crackdown on H-1B visas.

Speaking on Steve Bannon's War Room podcast, Brat said the H-1B system had been "captured by industrial-scale fraud", asserting that visa allocations from India had reached levels that defied statutory limits.

"71 per cent of H-1B visas come from India, and only 12 per cent from China. That tells you something's going on right there," Brat said. "There's a cap of only 85,000 H-1B visas, yet somehow one district in India -- the Madras (Chennai) district -- got 220,000. That's 2.5 times the cap Congress has set. So that's the scam."

Brat went on to frame the issue as a direct threat to American workers. "When one of these folks comes over and claims they're skilled -- they're not, that's the fraud. They're taking away your family's job, your mortgage, your house, all of that."

According to reports, the US consulate in Chennai processed roughly 220,000 H-1B visas and an additional 140,000 H-4 dependent visas in 2024. The consulate handles applications from four major regions -- Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Telangana -- making it one of the busiest H-1B processing centres in the world.

FORMER US DIPLOMAT SAYS VISA FRAUD WAS ‘INDUSTRIALISED'

The claims have resurfaced earlier allegations by Mahvash Siddiqui, an Indian-origin US Foreign Service Officer who served at the Chennai consulate nearly two decades ago. Siddiqui, in an interview, described the H-1B system as rife with forged documents, fabricated qualifications and proxy applicants.

She said she adjudicated at least 51,000 non-immigrant visas between 2005 and 2007, most of them H-1Bs. "80–90 per cent of the H-1B visas from India were fake -- either fake degrees or forged documents, or applicants who were simply not highly skilled," she said.

Siddiqui pointed to Hyderabad as a particular hotspot, claiming that Ameerpet -- a well-known training hub in the city -- hosted shops that openly coached visa applicants and sold fake employment letters, educational certificates and even marriage documents.

Siddiqui said that when consular officers began identifying large-scale fraud patterns, their efforts were met with resistance. She claimed there was "significant political pressure" from multiple sides and that their anti-fraud initiative was dismissed internally as a "rogue operation".

"As an Indian-American, I hate to say this, but fraud and bribery are normalised in India," she added. Siddiqui also alleged that some applicants avoided interviews if the officer was American, that proxy candidates sometimes appeared on their behalf, and that certain hiring managers in India allegedly demanded money in exchange for job offers used to support visa applications.

VISA PROGRAMME UNDER SCRUTINY

The H-1B visa allows US companies to hire foreign workers in specialised fields, particularly in technology. Indian nationals account for the vast majority of holders -- around 70 per cent in 2024 -- making India the single largest source of skilled migrants entering the US labour market.

Both H-1B visas and F-1 student visas have increasingly been targeted by MAGA-aligned political figures, who argue the programmes are abused and harm American workers.

However, the US President recently signalled support for the H-1B visa programme, widely used by Indian tech professionals, saying the US needs global talent to fill gaps in its own workforce.

In a Fox News interview recently, Trump was pressed on whether his administration would keep H-1B visas flowing despite criticism that they can undercut American wages. Trump didn't hesitate, indicating he was open to the programme and arguing the country must stay competitive by attracting skilled workers.

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