The United States has rejected nearly a quarter of all fresh H-1B visa applications, reported The Economic Times, citing an analysis by a US body. The Donald Trump-led administration rejected a fourth of all applications submitted between October 2018 and June 2019.

The rejection rate represents a three-fold jump in when compared to 2015, according to an analysis of H-1B data from US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) by National Foundation for American Policy, said the report.

“The denial rates for H-1B petitions have increased because USCIS has changed the standards for approval without new regulations or Congress passing a new law,” Stuart Anderson, executive director of NFAP was quoted as saying in the report.

The development is significant to India as Indian techies are major recipients of the prestigious H-1B visas. Indian nationals account for nearly 70 percent of all H-1B permit holders and any shift in US policy will affect their future prospects in the country.

In 2018, the top six Indian firms received just 16 percent or 2,145 H-1B work permits, fewer than the 2,399 visas that Amazon alone secured for its employees. The denial rate was a mere 6 percent in 2015. Cognizant had 60 percent of visa requests rejected followed by Capgemini, Accenture, Wipro and Infosys.

“There is a problem and sharp increase in denials. Also, the denial rate for past petitions for extension cases have gone up and that is more alarming,” Poorvi Chothani, managing partner, LawQuest, an immigration law firm was quoted as saying by The Economic Times.