(WASHINGTON, UNITED STATES) — Amazon laid off Hemant Virmani, a senior software development manager who spent more than 11.5 years at the company, during its October 2025 job cuts as the tech giant kept restructuring.
Virmani, a 47-year-old Indian-origin professional based in Washington, said an email arrived in the middle of the night and abruptly ended more than a decade of work that shaped his routines and career identity.
Business Insider published Virmani’s first-person account, which described the layoff’s emotional weight alongside the recent loss of his father.
Virmani wrote that his teenage daughter’s resilience pushed him to respond proactively rather than dwell on the abrupt change. He described refocusing his goals toward work he views as impactful, upskilling in artificial intelligence, and prioritizing health, networking and relationships he said years of corporate commitment had sidelined.
His story landed in a U.S. tech market where layoffs can carry a separate, time-sensitive threat for many foreign workers because immigration status often depends on a specific job. For H-1B visa holders and others on employment-based nonimmigrant visas, a termination can quickly turn a career disruption into a compliance and family stability crisis.
The pressure often starts with timing. USCIS guidance describes a discretionary grace period of up to 60 consecutive days for certain nonimmigrant workers after a job loss, though the agency frames the window as “up to” a set period and ties it to a worker’s authorized stay.
For families, that countdown can collide with practical realities that move slower than corporate layoff notices: lining up interviews, completing background checks, securing legal review, and collecting documents that must match immigration records. A job loss can also ripple through health insurance, housing, and children’s school arrangements when status depends on continued employment.
Workers facing a sudden layoff commonly look at a few broad paths: finding a new employer willing to sponsor quickly, seeking a change to another status that allows a longer stay without working, or leaving the United States. The mix depends on the person’s immigration category, I-94 expiration, prior approvals, and how fast a new role materializes.
USCIS has pointed laid-off workers to options that can provide limited stopgaps, including the grace-period framework and rules that let some H-1B workers move faster between employers. In a clarification dated March 10, 2023, USCIS stated: “The grace period starts the day after termination of employment, which is typically determined based on the last day for which a salary or wage is paid.”
Another concept many workers rely on is H-1B portability, which allows an H-1B worker to begin new employment when a new employer files a non-frivolous petition rather than waiting for final approval. Even then, the margin for error can feel thin, workers and employers say privately, because filing quality and timing must line up with a worker’s remaining authorized stay.
USCIS also describes a narrow option called the Compelling Circumstances Employment Authorization Document, which can provide a one-year work authorization for certain people with an approved I-140 who face “compelling circumstances.” The agency’s description frames it as a bridge beyond the 60-day limit for workers who qualify, not a universal fix.
Layoffs and the immigration clock have become a recurring feature of the tech downturn, and Amazon’s restructuring has made it part of a wider corporate pattern. Amazon has publicly stated it is reducing layers and boosting operational focus in strategic areas, and the broader account of its cuts included around 16,000 roles cut in early 2026 following previous layoffs in 2025.
For nonimmigrant workers, the same labor-market turbulence can compress job searches into a legal sprint. Recruiting cycles that might feel routine to citizens or permanent residents can collide with visa timelines for workers who must keep status continuous, avoid gaps that trigger new filings, and ensure each change is documented and timely.
Employers also face their own timing and cost calculations. Internal transfer rules, decisions about remote work, and location changes can intersect with immigration compliance, especially when a role’s worksite, duties, or corporate entity changes and requires updated paperwork. In a restructuring, a worker may be competing for fewer open roles while the company’s legal and human resources teams are simultaneously processing large volumes of departures and reorganizations.
Against that backdrop, recent developments in 2025 and 2026 have added new uncertainty, including reports about enforcement posture after a status issue. Reports that surfaced in August 2025 described some H-1B workers being issued Notices to Appear initiating removal proceedings shortly after layoffs, sometimes even within the 60-day window, though the same accounts said no formal policy change was announced and described case-by-case discretion.
Cost discussions have also unsettled employers and workers deciding whether a fast transfer is feasible. A 2025 presidential proclamation, as described in the account provided, introduced a one-time $100,000 fee for new H-1B visa applications, and separate reporting in late 2025 described a substantially higher fee reported up to $100,000 in some contexts. The figures were presented as affecting employer hiring decisions and workforce planning, especially when companies must decide quickly whether to sponsor a new petition.
Changes to the H-1B lottery process have also shaped the broader environment for global talent mobility. USCIS implemented a beneficiary-centric selection model for the FY 2025 and FY 2026 cycles to prevent fraud, and eligible registrations dropped by 38.6% in the FY 2025 cycle compared to the previous year due to these integrity measures, the account said, citing USCIS Newsroom in May 2024.
Virmani’s account did not present him as an H-1B worker, but it underscored a point many immigrant professionals recognize: tenure and seniority do not shield workers from restructuring. His experience, framed as a personal reset toward skills and priorities, mirrored how many foreign professionals in tech try to buffer themselves against sudden shocks that can trigger immigration deadlines.
The same story can land differently across the broader pipeline of global professionals, including NRIs, international students and early-career workers. Students on OPT or STEM OPT can face different constraints than experienced H-1B holders, and the timing of a job change can interact with school records, training plans, and employer compliance steps in ways that do not resemble a standard mid-career job search.
For people already in the middle of long-term green card plans, a job loss can also pause progress when employer sponsorship drives key filings. In that setting, a layoff can become a multi-track problem that includes not only the next job offer but the continuity of immigration paperwork tied to a specific employer.
USCIS and DHS publish the primary language many workers and employers rely on when a job ends, and the gap between a viral summary and a formal rule can matter when deadlines and eligibility turn on record details. The agency’s own phrasing can carry the clearest warning about how fast the clock can start: “The grace period starts the day after termination of employment, which is typically determined based on the last day for which a salary or wage is paid.”
Amazon Manager Layoff Highlights H-1B Visa Risks and Global Talent Mobility
The layoff of a long-term Amazon manager highlights the precarious situation of tech professionals navigating corporate restructuring and U.S. immigration laws. Foreign workers on H-1B visas must manage a 60-day legal sprint to maintain status. With rising application fees and increased enforcement, the intersection of labor market volatility and visa compliance creates a complex environment for global talent and their families seeking stability in the United States.
