Contrary to popular belief – and one often fueled by misperception and misinformation, major IT services companies do not hoard visas and they do not displace American workers. However, before favoring massive H1-B reform or outright abolishment, opponents should take a closer look at its implications from a global perspective. (The US H1B visa is a non-immigrant visa, allowing US companies to employ a foreign individual who is highly skilled, educated or a specialist for up to six years.)

Get ready for the H1-B debate to become a front-burner, if not front page issue in 2010.

The U.S. House of Representatives was last month presented with the Comprehensive Immigration Reform for America’s Security and Prosperity Act of 2009, or CIR ASAP. This bill proposes comprehensive immigration reform, including changes to the H1-B visa program. With all the hype, hysteria and hot air generated around the H1-B visa program issue during the past several years, one fundamental truism remains: the current annual level of H-1B visas being utilized in the United States is about the same level as in 1990.

Read More: -By Shami Khorana, President, HCL America, Inc.