(MENAFN- Live Mint) While it is well known that President Donald Trump's H-1B visa fee increase will affect United States tech companies, its impact could also be felt across the nation's education system. Several higher education leaders and public-school superintendents told the New York Times that the H-1B visa fee increase could negatively impact crucial teaching positions, including math and special education teachers.

The fee hike may also impact the education system in the rural parts of the country who rely on immigrants to fill vacancies in skilled professions like education and health care.

The Trump administration announced the H-1B visa fee hike on September 19 , arguing that employers were replacing American workers with cheaper talent from overseas. Since then, the White House has said the fee won't apply to existing visa holders and offered a form to request exemptions from the charge.

H-1Bs are primarily associated with tech workers from India. Big tech companies are the biggest user of the visa, and nearly three-quarters of those approved are from India. But there are critical workers, like teachers and doctors, who fall outside that category.

Some schools told NYT that the fee hike would make it very difficult for them to find teachers for some critical roles. Some leaders also said that it would make institutions“less competitive”.

Lynn Pasquerella, the president of the American Association of Colleges and Universities, said,“It's not as if this is done on a whim because we're trying to replace American workers. It is done based on what the Trump administration is calling for – on merit and who's the most qualified.”

She added that the new fee could also hinder universities' capacity to innovate and advance in areas like artificial intelligence, as it“undermines global collaboration.”

According to an AP report, America has faced a shortage of teachers and doctors and in other sectors over the last decade. Also Read | Can Trump's $100,000 H-1B visa fee hike boost local hiring? Geojit's Vinod Nair explains how

One in eight public school positions is either vacant or occupied by uncertified teachers, while the American Medical Association predicts a shortfall of 87,000 physicians over the next decade. These shortages are particularly severe in small, rural communities, which face challenges in filling positions due to lower wages and limited access to essentials such as housing and shopping.

“It really is potentially the cost of the salary and benefits of one teacher, maybe even two, depending on the state,” Melissa Sadorf, executive director of the National Rural Education Association, said.“Attaching that price tag to a single hire, it just simply puts that position out of reach for rural budgets.”

(With agency inputs)

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