US Vice President JD Vance has said he would support eliminating the H-1B visa programme altogether, calling it "completely broken" and accusing companies of misusing it to replace American workers with cheaper foreign labour — one of his strongest positions yet on an issue dividing the American right.
The Remarks
Vance made the comments in an interview with commentator Jack Posobiec aboard Air Force Two, which aired on Thursday's edition of Human Events Daily. Times Now reported that he said: "My belief on this is the H-1B program has been totally taken advantage of, not just by technology companies, by accounting firms, by people who are basically defrauding the American worker."
"I'd be very supportive of just eliminating it," Vance added, though he said that as long as the programme exists, protecting American workers must be the priority. He drew a distinction between bringing in genuine top talent and what he called abuse: "If you're going to bring in an accountant making $45,000 a year to replace an accountant who's an American making $60,000 a year, that's not you using the program to bring in a genius. That's you destroying American jobs."
A Splitting-the-Right Moment
The remarks mark one of the clearest positions Vance — widely seen as a 2028 presidential hopeful — has taken on an issue that has pitted Silicon Valley allies within the Republican Party against a more restless, immigration-skeptical wing of the right. Times Now noted his comments suggest he is siding firmly with the latter camp.
The Trump administration has already tightened the programme, issuing an executive proclamation adding a $100,000 fee for certain applicants — a restriction President Trump extended in September 2026 through September 2027, with a national-interest exception. Vance said the fee emerged from discussions between himself, the president and senior adviser Stephen Miller after they concluded Congress would not act on reforms. He added that the administration had "done more on the H-1B visa than any administration in history," while the measure remains tied up in legal battles.
Why It Matters for India
India is by far the largest source of H-1B workers, with Indian nationals accounting for the majority of approvals in recent years. Any move toward elimination would carry enormous consequences for Indian tech professionals and the outsourcing industry — and comes just days after Washington said it had revoked over 250,000 visas since President Trump's return. Vance's statement is not policy, and eliminating the programme would require an act of Congress, but it signals how far the debate has moved inside the administration.
Sources:
JD Vance Says H-1B Visa Program Should Be Eliminated Entirely — Times Now
JD Vance Says H-1B Visa Programme 'Completely Broken', Should Be Scrapped — News18
EXCLUSIVE: JD Vance says H-1B visa program should be eliminated — Human Events
The Remarks
Vance made the comments in an interview with commentator Jack Posobiec aboard Air Force Two, which aired on Thursday's edition of Human Events Daily. Times Now reported that he said: "My belief on this is the H-1B program has been totally taken advantage of, not just by technology companies, by accounting firms, by people who are basically defrauding the American worker."
"I'd be very supportive of just eliminating it," Vance added, though he said that as long as the programme exists, protecting American workers must be the priority. He drew a distinction between bringing in genuine top talent and what he called abuse: "If you're going to bring in an accountant making $45,000 a year to replace an accountant who's an American making $60,000 a year, that's not you using the program to bring in a genius. That's you destroying American jobs."
A Splitting-the-Right Moment
The remarks mark one of the clearest positions Vance — widely seen as a 2028 presidential hopeful — has taken on an issue that has pitted Silicon Valley allies within the Republican Party against a more restless, immigration-skeptical wing of the right. Times Now noted his comments suggest he is siding firmly with the latter camp.
The Trump administration has already tightened the programme, issuing an executive proclamation adding a $100,000 fee for certain applicants — a restriction President Trump extended in September 2026 through September 2027, with a national-interest exception. Vance said the fee emerged from discussions between himself, the president and senior adviser Stephen Miller after they concluded Congress would not act on reforms. He added that the administration had "done more on the H-1B visa than any administration in history," while the measure remains tied up in legal battles.
Why It Matters for India
India is by far the largest source of H-1B workers, with Indian nationals accounting for the majority of approvals in recent years. Any move toward elimination would carry enormous consequences for Indian tech professionals and the outsourcing industry — and comes just days after Washington said it had revoked over 250,000 visas since President Trump's return. Vance's statement is not policy, and eliminating the programme would require an act of Congress, but it signals how far the debate has moved inside the administration.
Sources:
JD Vance Says H-1B Visa Program Should Be Eliminated Entirely — Times Now
JD Vance Says H-1B Visa Programme 'Completely Broken', Should Be Scrapped — News18
EXCLUSIVE: JD Vance says H-1B visa program should be eliminated — Human Events
