The Indian rupee plunged to an all-time low of 88.62 against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday, rattled by President Donald Trump’s abrupt decision to impose hefty new fees on H-1B visas. The measure, announced late last week, has triggered outcry across Silicon Valley and dealt a fresh blow to India’s already fragile currency outlook.
The White House revealed that firms will now be charged $100,000 for each new H-1B worker visa, widely used by tech majors including Amazon, Microsoft and Meta. Initial confusion about whether the fees would be annual or apply to existing holders created chaos for workers and employers alike, forcing clarifications from Washington.
While some executives such as IBM’s Gary Cohn and Netflix’s Reed Hastings welcomed the move as a way to prioritize high-value roles, most industry leaders warned it would cripple startups, raise costs, and undermine America’s reputation for attracting global talent. “High-skilled immigrants don’t take from us, they build with us,” said Esther Crawford, a Meta product director. Others cautioned that companies may accelerate shifting jobs to India or Canada.
Fallout in India: Rupee and Remittances Under Pressure
For India, the visa hike has amplified a storm of external pressures. The rupee, already weighed down by U.S. tariffs of 50% on Indian goods, slumped past its previous record of 88.4550 per dollar. Currency traders said the Reserve Bank of India intervened through state-run banks near the 88.50 mark, but allowed further depreciation in a calibrated manner to avoid disorderly markets.
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Economists noted that fewer Indian tech workers deployed to the U.S. could reduce remittance flows, straining dollar inflows into India. Equity markets have also suffered, with foreign investors pulling more than $15 billion from Indian equities in 2025, particularly from the IT sector most exposed to the policy shift. “For the rupee, the pressures have increased in terms of tariffs kicking in at 50% and the recent visa news is incrementally negative for equity flows,” said ANZ Bank strategist Dhiraj Nim.
Chaos for Workers and Families
The sudden rollout sparked panic among workers. Some travelers abandoned overseas trips, while others scrambled to return to the U.S. before the rules took effect. Andrew Ng, founder of DeepLearningAI, called the rollout “abrupt and chaotic,” warning that America was driving away talent.
For many in India’s IT sector, the changes are seen as a direct threat to competitiveness. Higher costs could squeeze margins, delay projects for U.S. clients, and weaken investor confidence in a sector long considered India’s growth engine.
A Policy with Global Ripple Effects
Beyond India, analysts warned the visa fees could burden a U.S. labor market already weakened by protectionist trade policies. Economists at Berenberg said the policy risked creating “brain drain” by pushing skilled immigrants away, a move that could eventually slow productivity and innovation.
Trump’s latest immigration move adds to a broader clampdown that has included border raids and deportations. But unlike past crackdowns focused on undocumented workers, this one directly targets the highly skilled workforce central to U.S. technology dominance.
With India’s rupee under strain and America’s tech sector in uproar, the fallout from Washington’s visa gambit underscores how a single policy shift can reverberate across borders—reshaping economies, careers, and the balance of global talent.
GVS South Asia Desk with input from wire agencies.