The Trump Administration has sought 60 days to respond to a court case that challenges the decision of the previous Obama Administration to authorise wifes of H-1B holders to work in the US.
While the move by the Obama Administration during its last phase was welcomed by the large H-1B community, which mainly included Indians, several American groups challenged this decision in a federal court in Washington DC.
On February 1, the Department of Justice had filed an appeal with the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit entitled “Consent motion to hold proceedings in abeyance for 60 days”. The government has asked for a 60-day pause in the case to “allow incoming leadership personnel adequate time to consider the issues.”
In a statement, Immigration Voice, a non-profit organization, said that this is “especially concerning” because Attorney General Jeff Sessions, when he was a US Senator, called the H-4 Rule a “change (in) immigration law in a way that hurts American workers.”
Even though this rule has actually allowed many H-4 visa holders, including named intervenors, the ability to start businesses in the United States that employ American workers that would otherwise not have jobs if the Rule had not been promulgated, Immigration Voice said.
