Infosys has paid $34 million (Rs 210 crore) to settle its two-year-long visa-related issue with the US Government. The settlement resolves the company of all allegations, according to a company statement.
This is the largest fine paid by an Indian company.
The settlement also concludes the investigation by the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas and additionally resolves all issues with the US Department of State, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement and the US Department of Homeland Security over problems related to I-9 forms. These forms are required to be filled up by a company to be eligible to work in the US.
There were no criminal charges or court rulings against Infosys and no limitations on the company’s eligibility for federal contracts or access to US visa programmes as a result of the settlement, an Infosys spokesperson said.
Analysts agree. “The company had anticipated it and made the required provisions and it will not impact the business,” said Ankita Somani, IT & Telecom analyst with Angel Broking.
This issue of eligibility of some of its workforce to work in the US came to light after some former Infosys employees filed lawsuits, alleging that the management retaliated against them for blowing the whistle on visa-related fraud.
Further, the company said that there is no evidence that the I-9 paperwork violations, allowed any Infosys employee to work beyond their visa authorisation. As reflected in the settlement, Infosys denies and disputes any claims of systemic visa fraud, misuse of visas for competitive advantage, or immigration abuse, said an Infosys spokesperson.
Those claims are untrue and are assertions that remain unproven. The company's use of B-1 visas was for legitimate business purposes and not in any way intended to circumvent the requirements of the H-1B programme, the statement added.
The company said that in the settlement agreement, the US Government has acknowledged the fact that Infosys has demonstrated a commitment to comply with immigration laws through its current visa practices.
Infosys has amicably settled one such case with Satya Dev Tripuraneni, an Indian American who worked in the California office.