Is the H-1B visa crisis a blessing in disguise for IT?

Indian information technology (IT) services companies' strategy of servicing US clients from offshore locations to offset the impact of the H-1B visa fee hikefrom $1,000 to $100,000-is boosting their operating margins.

- Jas Bardia

In the July-September quarter, HCLTech, the country's third-largest IT firm, booked the highest quarteron-quarter jump in operating margin of 110 bps (basis points) to 17.4%.

It was followed by Tech Mahindra (100bps to 12.1%), Persistent Systems (80bps, 16.3%), and Infosys (20bps, 21%). L&T Technology Services Ltd (LTTS), too, saw margins rise 10bps to 13.4%. A hundred basis points equal 1%.

These companies cited offshoring and nearshoring as contributing to this rise, and expect it to continue.