We are losing value immigrants

The huge backlog in US immigration visas is leading to a "reverse brain-drain" that will force skilled workers to return to their home country. The study by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation found that more than one million potential immigrants, including scientists, engineers, doctors and researchers, are competing for 120,000 permanent US resident visas each year. Some applicants must wait several years, in part because the number of employment visas issued to immigrants from any single country is fewer than 10,000 per year.

The researchers concluded that the number of skilled workers waiting for visas is significantly larger than the number that can be admitted to the United States.

A majority of immigrant company founders, including many in the tech sector, came to the United States as students. Many ended up staying in the United States after graduation, with a number founding new companies. 31 percent of the startups in tech centers had an immigrant key founder, including 52.4 percent in California's Silicon Valley.