Infosys on Wednesday agreed to pay a hefty fine of $34 million in a civil settlement with US authorities to resolve the case arising out of allegations of visa abuse. The Indian IT major, however, denied that it had resorted to any “systemic visa fraud”.
In what is said to be the largest-ever fine imposed in a visa violation case in the US, Infosys will pay $5 million to Homeland Security Investigations, $5 million to the US State Department and $24 million to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas.
A filing made in federal court in Sherman, Texas said that Infosys committed “systemic visa fraud and abuse of immigration processes”.
But in a rebuttal of this accusation, the Indian IT major said: “Infosys denies and disputes any claims of systemic visa fraud, misuse of visas for competitive advantage, or immigration abuse. The settlement removes the uncertainty of prolonged litigation and allows us to continue to focus on delivering measurable results for our clients.”
The Infosys statement also sought to highlight that “there were no criminal charges or court rulings against the company”. “Furthermore, there are no limitations on the company’s eligibility for federal contracts or access to U.S. visa programs as a result of the settlement,” it said.
US Attorney John Bales said in a complaint that was filed and settled on Wednesday that Infosys circumvented requirements of the H-1B visa programme by using B-1 visas instead.
While H-1B visas allow businesses to temporarily employ foreign nationals in a “specialty occupation”, B-1 visas only permit temporary entrance to the US for limited business purposes. Those coming under B-1 visas are not allowed to perform skilled or unskilled labour.
“Infosys committed visa fraud by knowingly and unlawfully using B-1 visa holders to perform skilled labor in order to fill positions in the U.S. for employment that would otherwise be performed by U.S. citizens or require legitimate H-1B visa holders,” said the complaint. Infosys had been served a federal grand jury subpoena seeking records related to its sponsorships for B-1 business visas.
While acknowledging errors and omission in records it kept on temporary tech workers brought to the US from India to work with American companies, Infosys denied the sharp accusations in the US complaint.
“This is not a settlement about systemic visa fraud,” Stephen A. Jonas of WilmerHale, the lead lawyer representing Infosys, said after the settlement was made public in Plano, Texas, adding: “The company adamantly denies all those allegations.”
In terms of the settlement, Infosys will revise its record-keeping practices and its methods for applying for visas and to report to prosecutors over the next two years.
Infosys, however, maintained that its use of business visitor visas was for legitimate business purposes and not intended to circumvent the requirements of H-1B visas.