US Policy Expert Dismisses Viral H-1B Visa Allegation as "Impossible and Misleading"
A prominent American policy researcher has strongly refuted viral claims circulating on social media that a single immigration lawyer based in Texas was responsible for approving hundreds of thousands of H-1B visas. Connor O’Brien, a fellow at the Institute for Progress, labeled the allegations as impossible, misleading, and "wild" in his detailed response on platform X.
Examining the Viral Claim's Flawed Premise
The controversial claim suggested that Indian-origin immigration attorney Chand Parvathaneni, operating from Dallas, had "approved" approximately 700,000 H-1B visa applications since 2020. The viral video further insinuated connections to IT shell companies and potential fraud within the visa system.
Connor O’Brien countered this assertion with factual data, stating: "It would be wild if a single immigration lawyer had 700,000 clients successfully receiving H-1B visas in a single year, considering that's roughly the size of the entire population of people in America on the visa. Color me skeptical!"
Official USCIS Data Reveals Actual H-1B Approval Numbers
O’Brien shared official statistics from US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) that clearly demonstrate the inaccuracy of the viral claim. The annual H-1B petition approvals for recent fiscal years are substantially lower than the alleged 700,000 figure:
- Fiscal Year 2016: Approximately 357,211 approvals
- Fiscal Year 2017: Approximately 373,392 approvals
- Fiscal Year 2018: Approximately 334,961 approvals
- Fiscal Year 2019: Approximately 389,378 approvals
- Fiscal Year 2020: Approximately 426,710 approvals
These numbers represent total annual approvals across all applicants and attorneys nationwide, making the claim about a single lawyer handling 700,000 visas particularly implausible.
Understanding the Actual Role of Immigration Lawyers
The viral allegation contains a fundamental misunderstanding of the H-1B visa process. Immigration attorneys do not approve visas—they prepare and file petitions on behalf of employers. The authority to approve or reject H-1B petitions rests solely with USCIS officers.
Chand Parvathaneni addressed the allegations directly, stating: "As immigration attorneys, we do not have financial or ownership interests in any of our client companies. We do not guarantee approvals, and our work and fees remain the same regardless of whether a case is approved or denied. Our role is limited to preparing and filing petitions based on information provided by employers."
Contextualizing the Data Behind the Controversy
Data from H-1B tracking platforms like MyVisaJobs indicates that Parvathaneni has been associated with more than 20,000 Labour Condition Applications since around 2020—a significant number but dramatically different from the viral claim's 700,000 figure.
The viral video also highlighted cases where multiple IT companies listed the same residential addresses in Texas suburbs including Irving, Frisco, and Plano. It suggested dozens of H-1B workers were linked to single houses, referencing a "99% suspicion rate." However, these figures lack official verification and are not based on government findings.
Legal experts note that shared residential addresses for multiple H-1B workers are not automatically illegal. Small businesses, remote operations, and startups may legitimately operate from residential locations under current regulations.
Broader Political Context of H-1B Visa Debates
This controversy emerges amid ongoing political debates about H-1B visa usage in the United States. Some MAGA base and 'America First' supporters have consistently claimed rampant misuse of the H-1B program, despite the Trump administration implementing several restrictive guidelines on the visa system.
The viral claims appear to tap into these broader concerns about immigration and employment practices, though experts like O’Brien emphasize the importance of distinguishing between factual data and sensationalized allegations in such discussions.
