Amazon's India Visa Crisis: A Remote Work Permission That Barely Works

Amazon has made a rare concession to its strict office-first mandate, allowing employees stranded in India due to US visa processing backlogs to work remotely through early March. The internal directive permits any staff member who was in India as of December 13 and awaiting a rescheduled visa interview to continue working from India until March 2.

The visa gridlock stems from sweeping H-1B visa reforms introduced by the Trump administration, which introduced new procedural requirements including mandatory social media reviews by consular officers. These changes have created unprecedented delays—some applicants now face visa appointments scheduled years into the future.

The Catch: Remote Access With Handcuffs

While Amazon granted remote work flexibility, the company attached severe operational restrictions. Employees working from Indian soil cannot engage in coding, code testing, troubleshooting, strategic planning, customer communication, contract negotiation, or office visits. All critical reviews, final sign-offs, and approvals must occur outside India, with no exceptions permitted under local regulations.

This creates a fundamental paradox, particularly for technical teams. Software engineers—who typically spend their workdays writing code and deploying systems—are essentially barred from performing their core responsibilities. The policy transforms remote work into a holding pattern rather than a functional work arrangement.

The Broader Problem

The memo provides no pathway for employees whose visa delays extend beyond March 2, nor does it address workers stranded in other countries. Multiple US embassy locations have rescheduled interviews as far out as 2027, leaving thousands in prolonged uncertainty.

For Amazon specifically, the implications are significant. The company submitted approximately fourteen thousand eight hundred certified H-1B applications during fiscal 2024, making it one of the H-1B program’s heaviest users. A substantial portion of these applicants are now caught in the visa backlog, unable to commence work or secure their immigration status.

The policy reveals the tension between corporate flexibility and regulatory constraints. Amazon responded to an unprecedented crisis by offering remote access—a gesture that, upon closer inspection, amounts to little more than paid waiting time for many technical staff.