An Indian woman with a six-figure job in the US, who won an H-1B visa lottery, said she decided to walk away from it all to be close to her family. 28-year-old Disha Lamba said she moved to the US in 2021 to pursue a master’s degree in computer engineering at New York University and managed to build a successful career, landing a data scientist role at CVS Health in 2024.
“Once you’re on an H-1B, you need a new visa stamp to travel and return to the US, and getting a stamping appointment in India can be a pain. After quitting her job, Lamba flew to Gurugram, where she is living with her parents and brother. She took a two-month career break, which was a luxury that came from not having an employment visa. Another proposal could see the Trump administration end work permits for spouses of H-1B visa holders.
“I had a great life in the US, but decided to move back in May 2026, primarily to be closer to family. If it goes through, it would reverse a rule that has let eligible H-4 visa holders work legally in the US for more than ten years. Indian professionals are likely to be hit hardest, as many H-4 permit holders are Indian.
I also wasn’t OK with the restrictions that come with the H-1B visa,” said Lamba. Lamba said the H-1B visa has its pros, but she was not okay with the cons. She said having an H-1B visa meant it was harder to change employers, pursue additional income streams or take a career break. Since the H-1B is generally granted in three-year increments, I felt there’d be a lot of ongoing visa management,” said Lamba. Lamba said India offers similar career opportunities as the US Although she did not have a job offer in hand yet.
