By Simon Simonian
A bit surprised at all “nothing would happen” answers here. Curious as to the logic behind all those “nothing”s.
According to the USCIS, as of mid 2019, there’s close to 500,000 H1B visa holders, and that’s not counting spouses and children. That’s half a million of qualified, law-abiding, educated people that bring not only tons of value to their respective companies, but provide major boost to the economy with their day-to-day spending and paying taxes. What happens if they all disappear tomorrow? Well, for starters, the US business will suffer, specifically the technology sector. You’re talking hundreds of thousands of holes that just opened everywhere, from Microsoft and Apple all the way down to startups. These are large holes that cannot simply be plugged, at least not for another 4–5 years. What can the US business do short term? They would need to move most of their offices offshore, to India, China, Europe, Canada, etc etc. thus boosting those countries’ economies. Some companies may be forced to bring less qualified replacements like students.
Next… You’re talking negative impact on the rest of the economy where those law-abiding, educated and money-making people normally take their dollars – from real estate to hospitality.
The argument that one could make here is that those 500,000 constitute less than 1% of the ~350M US population. True, but remember we’re talking (again, I emphasize) high-paid, well-educated high-spenders that contribute to the economy in major ways. So that argument is apples to oranges.
Last but not least, many of those H1B visa holders go on to raise well-educated children or start their own successful businesses, further contributing to the economy. So, “nothing”?
EDIT: Apparently lots of pissy people out there not liking my post. I welcome intelligent opinions as long as they are respectful, and I am happy to share my side of things in an equally respectful manner. I do not welcome incoherent replies that bear no argument and are offensive in nature.
Source: Quora