US suspends fast-track processing

US authorities are temporarily suspending the speedy, premium processing of a visa which is often used by tech firms to recruit foreign skilled workers.

The H-1B visa is issued to tens of thousands of highly skilled foreign nationals each year, but as of April 3, applicants will no longer be able to use a costly shortcut to rush the processing of their visas.

On Friday, USCIS announced that the "premium processing" of H-1B visas -- which saw wait times reduced from several months to 15 days -- would be temporarily suspended for up to six months.

The US offers 85,000 H-1B visas every year, most of which are snapped up by Indian outsourcers.