Mohamed Zeeshan moved to the US in 2023 as a green card holder. But looking back, he says he would not do the same today on an H-1B visa, because the route is tied to a particular employer and can collapse fast if that job disappears.

The core problem, in his words: “Your visa is tied to an employer who can fire you at any time,” and losing your job can force you to leave the country. “You’re always on edge,” he explains, describing how visa uncertainty makes it harder to build a stable life. That matters well beyond immigration policy trivia, because an increasing number of talented people are trying to decide whether to bet their next few years on an uncertain temporary work pathway.

Zeeshan’s journey starts with international life and international education. Born in Indonesia because his father’s job took him there, he moved back to India when he was 7. He later studied international affairs at Columbia, completing his master’s in 2016 and graduating in 2018. He says the US drew him for American liberties, including free speech, and he was especially drawn to President Barack Obama because Obama grew up in Indonesia and has spoken publicly about his identity across cultures. His background also shaped how he thinks about policymaking: he wrote a book about India as an emerging power and cares about improving policymaking there, even though he says he has felt people hate him for critiquing India’s policymaking.

For Zeeshan, the path to permanent status was not a straight line. After graduation, he wanted to stay in the US and work using Optional Practical Training (OPT), a work authorization for international students. But after the 2016 election, he felt changes in immigration-policy rhetoric created uncertainty, and he believed employers were unwilling to take the risk of hiring an international student. Instead of relying on the common OPT-to-H-1B pathway, he left the US and worked in the Middle East for a management consulting firm. Then, in 2021, he pursued an alternative route: self-petitioning for a green card from abroad.

That self-petitioning matters because it required “extensive evidence” that his work was in the national interest. Zeeshan said his research background and work in public-interest issues helped him build a strong portfolio. In 2023, he received the green card, removing the need for employer sponsorship or a visa tied to a specific employer. Today, he and his wife rent an apartment in Arlington, Virginia. Their family life is unconventional by Indian standards, since couples are often expected to have kids immediately after marriage. They are holding off because his wife is still waiting for her green card, and they want to reduce uncertainty before having children.

Zeeshan’s perspective is not just about policy mechanics. He says economic upliftment was not the reason he moved to the US. When he lived in Dubai, he paid no income tax and earned more there than he did after getting his green card and first job in the US. Instead, he points to American ideals of free speech and an entrepreneurial culture, plus comparatively less bureaucratic regulation. He also says cultural factors play a big role in why people still want to move: he says his female friends from India told him the US offers more freedom to build careers and lives they want.

At the same time, his lived experience suggests the US labor market is not feeling stable enough for everyone who wants it. He says he is now seeing relatives and friends looking at options like Germany and Australia because it has become difficult to land a job and a visa in the US after graduating. That is the second-order issue executives should notice: the competition for global talent is not only about wages or brand. It is also about how predictable the immigration pipeline feels for workers and their families.

The H-1B itself, in his view, was already “uncertain and inefficient” even when he was graduating. The reason is structural: a temporary work visa is linked to an employer, meaning the worker’s status can be disrupted by employment changes that are not under the worker’s control. He also flags a specific recent development: the introduction of a $100,000 H-1B fee that was later struck down by a federal judge but remains tied up in court. Even when policy changes are halted, the uncertainty can linger.

He tries to point people toward other options, including the EB-1A visa for “extraordinary” individuals. But he also says those petitions seem harder to win over time, citing data showing EB-1A denial rates are increasing. His bottom line is explicit: he intends to naturalize and become a US citizen, unless something makes that difficult, and he argues that if his only access point were an H-1B, he would not come to the US today. For decision-makers at companies relying on international talent, that warning is a signal: visa uncertainty is not only a personal stress test. It is a practical constraint that affects hiring choices, retention risk calculations, and how confident high-skill workers feel about committing their lives to a plan that can change with a job loss or a court case.