US H-1B visa fee hike to increase costs for Indian IT companies by $100-250 million

Chennai, Feb. 12 -- The $1,00,000 H-1B visa application fee charged by the US will increase the operating costs for big information technology (IT) companies like TCS, Infosys, Wipro and HCL Technologies by $100-250 million, states Moody's Ratings in a report.

According to the report, the big companies can absorb the hike as it works out to about 1% of their revenues their ample cash reserves provides the buffer.

Strong profitability and a structural talent gap in the US will help offset the new financial pressures, Moody's said. According to the credit rating agency, the IT sector represents about 80% of India's total services exports, making its health critical to the country's export growth.

With the US as its largest single export ma...