Narayan AmmachchiIndia’s leading IT services companies are steadily cutting back on their reliance on H-1B visas, deterred by soaring visa costs and growing geopolitical uncertainties.
Data from the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) shows that over the past decade, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys, HCL Technologies, Wipro, Tech Mahindra, and LTIMindtree together have reduced H-1B visa issuances by nearly 56%.
According to data from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) sponsored 5,505 H-1B visas in 2025, marking a steep decline from 10,525 visas sponsored in 2021.
Foreign IT consulting majors such as Accenture, Capgemini, Cognizant, and IBM — which have long depended on Indian tech talent — also scaled back their H-1B filings by about 44% between FY21 and FY25.
By contrast, U.S. tech giants including Amazon, Microsoft, Meta, Apple, and Google have maintained a strong flow of Indian talent, continuing to dominate H-1B sponsorships.
Analysts attribute the shift to rapid technological advances in cloud computing and artificial intelligence, which are reshaping traditional labor and productivity models.
With remote delivery models and automation reducing the need for on-site staffing, the demand for physical presence in overseas locations has sharply declined.
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