Meta And Amazon Layoffs Put Indian H-1B Workers Under 60-Day Visa Deadline
Key Takeaways
- Meta and Amazon layoffs trigger 60-day H-1B visa grace period.
- Indian H-1B workers must find new sponsorship or exit within 60 days.
- Thousands of Indian H-1B workers face job loss and visa status risk.
H-1B clock after layoffs
People Matters Media also cites Layoffs.fyi data saying more than 110,000 technology workers have lost jobs globally so far this year, while NDTV says Meta has cut about 8,000 jobs as it shifts resources toward artificial intelligence.
The Economic Times frames the same 60-day window as “central to this process,” saying H-1B workers who are laid off are generally allowed up to 60 consecutive days to either find a new employer willing to transfer their visa or change their immigration status.
NDTV adds that if workers fail to secure a sponsor within that period, they are expected to leave the country, turning a layoff into “a race against time involving immigration paperwork, mortgage payments, school admissions, healthcare, and family decisions.”
Visa-change scrutiny and quotes
As laid-off H-1B workers look for ways to remain legally while searching for new jobs, The American Bazaar reports that immigration attorney Rajiv Khanna said, “We are seeing a significant spike in RFEs and Notices of Intent to Deny on B-1/B-2 change-of-status applications filed by laid-off H-1B workers.”
The American Bazaar also describes a viral X post about a Meta layoff email arriving at 11pm Bangalore time, with the post saying, “His H-1B clock just started ticking — 60 days.”
People Matters Media says immigration lawyers told US media outlets that workers are increasingly exploring temporary alternatives such as filing for a B-1 or B-2 visitor visa through Form I-539, while also noting that authorities are scrutinising such applications more closely with increased requests for documentation and additional questioning.
The Economic Times adds that some workers are exploring a change of status to a B-2 visitor visa, saying the category allows individuals to remain in the US for a temporary period without employment, but does not permit work.
What’s at stake next
People Matters Media says the impact of the layoffs stretches beyond employment into “uncertainty around immigration status, housing, healthcare and family stability,” and it ties that risk to the fact that Indian nationals accounted for the overwhelming majority of approved H-1B petitions in US government data for FY25.
“Thousands of employees at Meta woke up to a 4 AM email informing them that their jobs had been cut, as the company pushes deeper into its AI-focused future, according to a report by Business Insider”
The American Bazaar provides a specific FY25 breakdown, saying a 2026 report from USCIS and the Department of Homeland Security showed that Indians accounted for 283,772 of the 406,348 approved H-1B petitions in FY25.
NDTV says many laid-off Indian workers are trying temporary alternatives such as switching to a B-2 visitor visa, and it adds that under rules set by USCIS, laid-off H-1B workers usually get “just 60 days to find another employer willing to sponsor their visa.”
People Matters Media also reports that severance packages for employees laid off by Meta include 16 weeks of base pay plus an additional two weeks for every year of service, while it notes that healthcare coverage is being provided for up to 18 months even as immigration experts say it does not address the underlying visa deadline.
More on USA
Potential Crack in GKN Aerospace Chemical Tank Prompts Evacuations in Garden Grove, California
19 sources compared
Nasire Best Killed After Opening Fire on Secret Service Checkpoint Outside White House
19 sources compared
Secret Service Engages Suspect, FBI Supports Response After Gunshots Near White House
16 sources compared
Mahmoud Khalil Appeals to U.S. Supreme Court After Third Circuit Rejects Deportation Review
15 sources compared