Representative image of deportation.
Credit: iStock photo
Hyderabad: One in six Indian H-1B visa holders or someone they know has been served a deportation notice -Notice to Appear (NTA) within the 60-day grace period after being laid off and often faced the risk of a permanent ban from the US, according to a poll of 1,584 participants posted on August 6, 2025 on Blind, the anonymous community app for verified professionals.
Nearly half said they would return to India if forced to leave.
Normally, laid-off H-1B workers in the U.S. are granted a 60-day grace period to secure a new employer or change their visa status. But since mid-2025, reports have surged of NTAs being issued well before the grace period ends, in some cases within just two weeks, and deemed “out of status.”
“Multiple cases where NTAs were sent in 2 weeks,” a Meta user wrote on Blind. “Immigration lawyers now advise leaving as soon as possible after the job ends otherwise you risk a permanent ban from the US,” said another user.
This growing uncertainty is reshaping long-term plans. In another Blind survey, 45% of Indian professionals on US work visas said they would consider returning to India if they lost their job and had to leave the country. 26% would relocate to another country, and 29% remained undecided.
The biggest fears holding them back from leaving the US were significant pay cut (25%), lower quality of life (24%), cultural or family adjustment (13%) and fewer job opportunities (10%).
When asked if they would choose a US work visa again, only 35% said "yes.” The remaining 65% were either unsure (27%) or outright negative (38%), reflecting a shift in sentiment about the long-term value of U.S. immigration.
That shift is grounded in real experiences. Over one in three (35%) reported that either they or someone close to them had to leave the US after losing their job, often facing deportation risks during the short grace period. Taken together, the data suggested a growing number are now prepared to consider leaving the US with many looking to return to India.
Separately, Trump’s recent call for American companies to “stop hiring in India” has split opinion sharply along geographic lines- 63% of US based professionals said the move could benefit their companies, while 69% of India-based respondents said it would have a negative impact.
Blind conducted a survey on its platform between July 28 and August 8, 2025. A total of 2,089 verified Indian professionals currently working in the US on work visas, such as H-1B or L1, participated in the survey. Respondents were asked the following questions.
Bay Area in USA headquartered Blind is an anonymous app where 12 million verified professionals worldwide engage in honest conversations across companies and industries. Over 90% of employees at Meta, Uber, PayPal, and Capital One, as well as more than 70% of Microsoft employees in India, are users of the platform.