The H-1B Visa Cap: Skilled Immigrants’ Contribution to Innovation and Technology

Abstract

For some years now, there has been a push to increase the H-1B visa cap–the number of H-1B visas awarded by the U.S. government each fiscal year, currently standing at 65,000. This study aimed to quantify the effect of the H-1B cap on patenting activity among skilled immigrants to the U.S. Results showed that the H-1B cap did not have a significant effect on the number of patents awarded to non-residents of the United States.