In 2007, the limit of 65,000 was breached on the first day itself and the situation is expected to be no different this time around.

The US Chamber of Commerce is throwing its weight behind the idea to relax the numbers on the ground that it would benefit growth.

However, the general feeling is that Congress is neither going to do anything on an explosive issue in an election year that saw debates on outsourcing and displacement of jobs.

Indications are that law makers will use the remaining session of the 110th Congress by looking at the abuses of the H-1B and other visas by the employers rather than considering an increase of the quota.

With members of Congress at odds over the benefits of the H-1B system, a new study has shown that hiring of H-1B visa holders is associated with increases in employment at US technology companies, undermining the assertion of the critics that foreign-born professionals harm the job prospects of Americans.

Describing the cap on H-1B visas as ‘arbitrary and counterproductive’, Bill Gates, Microsoft Chairman, one of the major beneficiaries of H-1B visas, demanded a revamp of US immigration policies to allow skilled foreign technology workers from India and other countries to come in greater numbers on temporary visas.