US firms shift focus to India's GCCs for offshore ops

US corporations are accelerating their reliance on India for offshore operations after a steep hike in H-1B visa fees imposed by President Donald Trump, according to industry experts and economists.

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The move is giving new momentum to India's Global Capability Centres (GCCs), which are increasingly handling high-value work once concentrated in the United States.

Earlier this month, Trump signed an executive order imposing a $100,000 (about Rs 88.6 lakh) fee on new H-1B visa applications for skilled foreign workers. The revised charge is nearly 70 times higher than the earlier range of $1,500-4,000 (Rs 1.3-3.5 lakh). The administration has argued that the curbs are needed to protect American jobs and address national security concerns, but the abrupt increase has created uncertainty across industries.

India, already home to more than half of the world's GCCs, is emerging as a key beneficiary of the policy shift.