BENGALURU/HYDERABAD, India: Tighter U.S. immigration policies, particularly those targeting the H-1B skilled-worker visa, are reshaping India’s marriage landscape. Families once eager to secure Non-Resident Indian (NRI) grooms with jobs in the United States are now hesitating, worried that stricter rules under President Donald Trump’s administration could jeopardize their children’s future stability.
“Immigration policies may be written in Washington, but their ripple effects are felt at Indian dinner tables when families talk about marriages,” said Anuradha Gupta, founder of the matchmaking service Vows For Eternity.
In India, where arranged marriages remain common and family networks play an active role in partner selection, the United States long symbolized success and security. The world’s largest Indian diaspora — around 2.1 million Non-Resident Indians — has long been seen as a pool of ideal marriage prospects, offering both economic promise and social prestige.
But that perception is shifting. Sidhi Sharma, a 19-year-old medical student from Haryana, had hoped to marry an Indian citizen working in the U.S. “I had always dreamed of settling in the U.S. after marriage,” she said. “But Trump has shut the door for me.”
Since returning to office in January, Trump has launched a sweeping immigration crackdown, tightening both legal and temporary visa programs. His overhaul of the H-1B visa, which allows U.S. employers to hire skilled foreign workers, has hit Indians hardest — they accounted for 71 percent of H-1B recipients last year. For many Indian families, marrying an H-1B holder once promised financial stability and a foothold in the American dream. Now, that dream looks increasingly uncertain.
“Up until last year, there was a craze for NRI suitors,” said Vanaja Rao, a veteran matchmaker with nearly 50 years in the business. “But since Trump took over, we’ve seen a definite slowdown. After the recent chaos around H-1B, the panic has deepened.”
Uncertainty Delaying NRI Weddings
About 75 percent of H-1B visas issued to Indians in 2024 went to men, according to U.S. data — meaning most potential NRI grooms are directly affected by the policy shifts. Rao and others say some Indian families are now delaying weddings or reconsidering overseas matches altogether.
“There’s a lot of uncertainty about immigration in general,” said a 26-year-old Indian professional based in Atlanta, who requested anonymity. “I know of at least three weddings that have been postponed because of these visa issues.”
Academics say these fluctuations in U.S. immigration policy have long influenced India’s marriage market. “Every time there’s talk of tightening H-1B rules, marriage preferences shift,” said Harshita Yalamarty, an assistant professor at Toronto Metropolitan University. She recalled that Trump’s earlier proposal to ban work authorization for H-1B spouses during his first term also spooked Indian families — a policy later reversed by President Joe Biden.
The uncertainty is prompting a broader rethinking of the ‘American dream.’ There were about 422,000 Indian students in the U.S. in 2024, but many now see immigration barriers as deterrents rather than opportunities.
With uncertainty clouding U.S. prospects, Indian families are looking elsewhere. “Clients who once dreamed of an American match are now eyeing Canada, the U.K., Europe, or the Gulf,” said Nikita Anand, founder of Wedding Tales Matrimony. “The American dream hasn’t vanished — it’s just being replaced by a more practical one.”