H-1B visa shake-up raises hopes for Pakistan’s IT sector

KARACHI: The Trump administration’s plan to charge companies $100,000 annually for H-1B visas may pose challenges in the US, but tech experts in Pakistan see it as a chance to boost the country’s IT sector.

Tech expert Amar Makhdoom shared with The News that “the [newly introduced] annual fee on H-1B visas will likely accelerate demand for offshore and remote talent”. This, he added, “could push Pakistani tech salaries up by three to five times compared to current levels, while opening new opportunities for IT firms, staffing agencies and outsourcing companies.”

Since taking office in January, Trump has kicked off a wide-ranging immigration crackdown, including moves to limit some forms of legal immigration. The step to reshape the H-1B visa program represents his administration’s most high-profile effort yet to rework temporary employment visas, Reuters reported on Saturday.

“If you’re going to train somebody, you’re going to train one of the recent graduates from one of the great universities across our land,” said US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. “Train Americans. Stop bringing in people to take our jobs.”

India was the largest beneficiary of H-1B visas last year, accounting for 71 per cent of approved beneficiaries, while China was a distant second at 11.7 per cent, according to government data.

Makhdoom further added that the annual fee will also increase the need for global capability centres worldwide, where Pakistan can claim its share. When asked if this was Pakistan’s moment to build Indian city Bangalore-style tech zones, Makhdoom replied in the affirmative. Former chairperson of Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA) also lent credibility to this optimism. In his comments, he predicts that remote hiring and outsourcing by the US “will be at its peak”. For such outsourcing, “India’s cost is high while Pakistan’s is competitive in the region,” he added.

For macroeconomist Ammar Habib Khan, this may not be the case. “We do not have the requisite skilled human resource to develop such tech city capacity at a large scale.”

Pakistan produces around 40,000 technical graduates annually, co-founder of IT consultancy firm Data Darbar Mutaher Khan shared, implying that the country’s infrastructural position may not help it capitalise on any such opportunity.

“The local IT industry lacks the scale for very large projects. Substantial contracts -- say, worth $50 million or more -- are beyond the capacity of most firms here. Only one or two companies have handled such projects, and even those are spread over multiple years.”

IT exports in Pakistan have had a consistent run so far. The exports touched $337 million in August 2025, reflecting a 13 per cent year-on-year (YoY) increase. The August number also surpassed the 12-month average of $326 million, a testament to the sector’s growing global footprint.

Infrastructural issues, however, have plagued the industry’s growth. Persistent internet outages continue to affect the sector’s smooth operations. On whether Pakistan could become a tech hub, chairperson of the Wireless and Internet Service Providers Association of Pakistan Shahzad Arshad expressed that “building ‘Bangalore-style’ tech hubs requires more than cheap labour. [Pakistan] needs to fix the fundamentals,” adding that the country needs reliable high-speed internet, uninterrupted power and affordable, well-planned tech parks with housing and transport that make cities liveable for engineers.

“Equally critical are strong talent pipelines through universities and bootcamps, a predictable regulatory and tax framework, and the ability to assure foreign clients of compliance, security and smooth cross-border payments. If governments and private sector move together on these fronts, we can attract global outsourcing work and grow our own innovation economy,” Shahzad added.

Pointing to the ongoing internet issues which arose after multiple undersea cable cuts in the Red Sea, Shahzad said, “We are already passing through bad internet situation these days. And we had a similar situation last year too.”

Mutaher also cautioned that hopes for a positive outcome may not necessarily turn into reality. He added: ““Whenever sanctions or trade restrictions come up, like the current measures against India, there is often talk that Pakistan might benefit. But in reality, we have not seen any meaningful impact, and I don’t expect this situation to be any different.”