New approvals for the H-1B work visa among India’s leading IT service companies have plunged to their lowest level in a decade, reflecting a major shift in U.S. tech hiring trends.
According to fresh data compiled by the National Foundation for American Policy using records from the US Citizenship and Immigration Services H-1B Employer Data Hub, only 4,573 first-time H-1B petitions were approved for top Indian IT firms in FY2025. This marks a 70% decline from 2015 levels and a 37% drop compared to FY2024.
TCS Remains the Only Indian Firm in Top U.S. H-1B Employers
Among Indian companies, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) was the only firm to feature in the top five H-1B employers in the U.S. However, its initial H-1B approvals fell sharply to 846 in FY2025, down from 1,452 in FY2024 and 1,174 in FY2023.
While new visa approvals declined, TCS secured 5,293 approvals for continuing employment, which covers extensions for existing H-1B workers. The company’s extension rejection rate rose to 7%, compared to 4% last year, though its overall rejection rate for renewals remained low at 1.9%.
U.S. Tech Giants Now Dominate New H-1B Approvals
For the first time, the top four employers for new H-1B approvals are all U.S.-based technology giants:
- Amazon
- Meta
- Microsoft
This signals a clear shift away from outsourcing-led hiring by Indian IT firms toward direct recruitment by U.S. digital majors.
Out of the top 25 employers for initial H-1B filings, only three are Indian companies, underscoring the declining dominance of Indian IT services in new overseas hiring.
Employers Prioritising Retention Over New Hiring
The data shows that the bulk of H-1B petitions now relate to continuing employment rather than fresh recruitment. This indicates that U.S. employers are focusing more on retaining existing foreign workers instead of onboarding new overseas talent.
Rejection rates for extension petitions remained relatively low, ranging between 1% and 2% for companies such as Infosys, Wipro, and LTIMindtree. However, FY2025 recorded a noticeable spike in rejections for first-time H-1B applications.
Among large employers, TCS maintained one of the lowest initial rejection rates at 2%, followed by:
- HCL America – 6%
- LTIMindtree – 5%
- Capgemini – 4%
Software Engineer Approvals Continue to Slide
Data from immigration analytics portals Beyond Border and H1BGrader indicates that labour certifications for software engineers have been declining consistently for four consecutive years.
The number of certifications in this category fell from 40,378 in 2022 to 23,922 by the third quarter of 2025, highlighting tightening visa conditions and reduced global tech hiring.
What the Decline Signals
Experts say the contraction in new H-1B approvals reflects a structural transformation in global tech recruitment driven by:
- Increased U.S. enforcement and compliance scrutiny
- Expansion of local hiring
- Automation and AI adoption
- Geopolitical and immigration policy shifts
While Indian IT companies continue to retain a strong presence in the U.S. through extensions, the era of large-scale fresh offshore hiring via H-1B appears to be weakening.
