H-1B Visa Application

1 Introduction

The H-1B is a non -immigrant visa program in the United States that allows employers to employ foreign workers. The program is aimed towards professionals with a “theoretical and practical applications of a body of highly specialized knowledge” This program allows companies in the United States to hire foreign professionals with specific skills and expertise across various industries and locations (“H-1B Employer Data Hub,” n.d.).

2 Analysis

2.1 Trends

The analysis of H-1B applications for the fiscal years, 2020 - 2024, reveals some patterns:

Figure 1: The total number of H-1B Visa Approvals

Figure 2: The total number of H-1B Visa Denials

Fiscal.Year	approval	denial	total_applications	approvalRate	denialRate
2020	18841	14911	33752	56	44
2021	18280	4690	22970	80	20
2022	19468	2988	22456	87	13
2023	17314	4309	21623	80	20
2024	21636	3611	25247	86	14

TRUE

Table 1: Summary Statistics of H-1B Visa Program


    Pearson's Chi-squared test

data:  table
X-squared = 10538, df = 4, p-value < 2.2e-16

Table 2: Chisqaure Test

Overall, the approval rates have increased while denials have decreased. The trend suggest a shift in H-1B visa processing policies and practices over the 5 year period, with a clear move towards higher approval rates and fewer denials.

The chi-square test helps to determine if the observed changes in approval and denial rates are statically significant or merely random chance. This is crucial because:

it validates the trends
provides evidence to support the claims about the changes

The p-value, <2.2e-16, suggests that the approval and denial rate is not due too random chance.

2.2 Distribution

2.2.1 Distribution per State (Top 5 State)

2.2.2 Distribution per Industry (Top 5 Industries)

3 Conclusion

The approval rates have been increasing over the last 5 years with the denials decreasing, indicating that more and more foreign workers are getting access to the United States. The denial rate during the 2020 fiscal year could be due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused major disruptions in the visa processing.

The statistical evidence strengthens the conclusion that there has been a substantial shift in the H-1B processing, with a clear trend towards higher approval rates and lower denial rates.

References

“H-1B Employer Data Hub.” n.d. U.S. Citizenship; Immigration Services (USCIS). https://www.uscis.gov/tools/reports-and-studies/h-1b-employer-data-hub.