Visa change could deter incoming international faculty

The United States is a highly competitive and sought after country for careers in higher education, given it hosts more than 30 of the highest-ranked 45 institutions. In 2015-16 the US had 4,583 degree-granting universities and colleges out of which 3,004 institutions offered a four-year curriculum.

In recent years, there has been a shortage of faculty in the fields of computer science, nursing, accounting and special education. To overcome the shortage of faculty members, American universities are employing international staff from foreign countries and welcoming visiting scholars.

Internationalisation helps further research and education by bringing in diverse perspectives, expertise and life experiences. International staff also help students develop inter-cultural skills to succeed in the current global environment and to remain at the cutting edge of research.

To work legally in the US, international scholars are recruited using the J1 and H-1B visa options. Usually visiting scholars are recruited by the university through the J1 exchange visa. The J1 visa is not used for tenure track positions and is mostly favoured for visiting positions due to its lower processing cost and paperwork.

Spouses (on J2 visas) of J1 visa holders can apply for jobs in the US. However, companies may hesitate to hire these spouses since their partner's visiting scholar positions may last for a limited time (up to one year).

H1-B visa

The other legal option that universities use to recruit international staff is the H-1B visa, which is a common visa used to fill tenure track positions. Under the current visa policy, spouses of H-1B holders on H4 dependent visas are not eligible to work.

However, individuals on H-1B visas are supported by their universities (financially with the help of lawyers) to apply for a Green Card (permanent residency) and when these H-1B holders receive their I-140 (the second step in the employment-based Green Card process), their spouses are eligible to work (under the current visa policy approved in 2015 by the Obama administration).

Trump reversal

Almost 1.8 million H-1B visas have been distributed in fiscal years 2001 through 2015. The number of visas issued has been capped since 2005, but universities and colleges, non-profits and government research institutions are exempted from the cap. US President Donald Trump has ordered a review of the H-1B visa programme. One area affected is spousal rights.

The US Citizenship and Immigration Service is planning to reverse a 2015 final rule that granted eligibility for dependent spouses to work in the US. The Obama presidential administration granted work permits to spouses (on H4 dependent visas) of individuals on working visas (H-1B visas with I-140 approved) in 2015. This policy change will prevent such spouses from working in the US.

Research has shown that spousal work restrictions create complications in the personal lives of their partners on H-1B visas, which interfere with their work life resulting in lower overall life satisfaction. The study further identified six core classes of challenges faced by spouses on H4 visas: financial issues, frustration, loss of respect/low confidence, boredom, social isolation and domestic tension.

Therefore, this new visa policy change could negatively affect the recruitment of international staff to US universities and in turn impact the internationalisation of higher education in the US. This may also increase turnover of international staff currently working in universities in the US as research shows spouse dissatisfaction-related issues has been one of the top reasons for expatriate assignment failure.

International scholars may choose to expatriate to countries with more visa-friendly policies. For example, there has been an increase in the number of American-based Indian expatriates moving to Canada due to tighter American immigration policies.

Also, American universities may choose to recruit more visiting scholars on J1 visas than tenure track positions on H-1B visas. International staff interested in permanent residency in the US may not be too keen to visit the country on a J1 visa. This may lead to fewer staff applying for teaching positions in American universities.

My research with Christopher JL Cunningham anticipates a situation which may develop in the coming months which could become very difficult for some individuals who are currently working in the US on H-1B visas. This is because many of these families who temporarily benefited from the Obama administration’s immigration policies may have, in this time, bought a home or started their own businesses.

According to the research, "these major life events may soon have to be reversed or undone in some way if spousal work permits are cancelled. It is also important to note that the unpredictability of these impending changes to American visa restrictions will not only cause financial strain, but is already also causing psychological burden on families, particularly the spouses of H-1B visa holders".

University action

If the Trump administration in the US goes ahead with the plan to cancel work permits for spouses of expatriates, universities may have to come up with an action plan to support spouses of international scholars or staff.

Universities may help by developing skilled volunteer programmes for spouses as research has shown that immigrants and their descendants spend a substantial amount of time volunteering within the US. Through these programmes, universities could provide professional support and social support to help spouses recreate new identities in the host country.

This may create a meaningful life for spouses of H-1B holders which may in turn have a positive impact on family relationships and improve overall health and wellbeing.

Pooja B Vijayakumar is a researcher at Kemmy Business School, University of Limerick, Ireland.