Demand for H-1B visas have dropped by more than 50 percent when the numbers are compared for April 2010 and April 2011, according to figures cited by the Wall Street Journal. US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) received just 8,000 employer petitions for H-1B visas in April 2011, compared with roughly 16,500 petitions in April 2010 and 45,000 in April 2009.
The H-1B program allows US employers to sponsor highly skilled foreign-born workers for employment in the United States for up to six years.