Read Time - 8 minutes
Introduction
Understanding H-1B Visa Challenges
Better Ways to Build Your Tech Team Without H-1B Visas
Key Advantages of Partnering with SculptSoft
The Future of Global Tech Hiring
Conclusion
FAQs

Introduction

If you’ve tried hiring skilled tech talent from abroad recently, you already know – the H-1B visa process has become a headache. For decades, the H-1B visa program has allowed companies to bring specialized professionals especially from India to their U.S. offices to drive innovation.
But the recent H-1B visa regulation changes in 2025 have disrupted this model. The U.S. government introduced a $100,000 visa fee for new applications, adding to the already significant costs and long processing delays. For many organizations, especially startups and mid-sized tech firms, these fees have made it nearly impossible to hire foreign engineers on-site.
But here’s the thing – you don’t actually need to bring everyone to the U.S. to get great work done.
At SculptSoft, we help U.S. businesses build offshore development centers and remote engineering teams in India, so you can keep your projects moving without worrying about visas, paperwork, or relocation costs.

But first, let’s understand what the H-1B visa is, why it’s become so challenging, and then see how SculptSoft can help you work around it.

Understanding H-1B Visa Challenges

Let’s start with the basics – what exactly is the H-1B visa, and why has it become such a sticking point for U.S. companies?
The H-1B visa, established in 1990, allows U.S. companies to hire skilled foreign professionals in specialized fields such as IT, engineering, research, and emerging technologies like AI, data analytics, and cloud computing. 
For decades, it has been a key tool for American businesses to fill critical talent gaps that could not be met domestically, helping them remain competitive in fast-growing industries. However, recent changes in 2025 have made the H-1B visa process more costly, slower, and uncertain, with higher filing fees, stricter eligibility requirements, and longer approval timelines.  
These challenges have put significant pressure on companies that rely on on-site foreign talent, forcing them to rethink their hiring strategies. As a result, many businesses are now exploring offshore development centers, remote teams, and alternative staffing models to maintain productivity, control costs, and access skilled talent without navigating the complex H-1B Visa process.  
The Cost Keeps Climbing
Hiring someone through an H-1B visa isn’t just about paperwork, it’s about serious money.
Here’s a quick look at what employers are paying now:
Expense Category Typical Cost per Employee (USD)
Filing fees $6 K – $10 K
Legal & processing fees $3 K – $5 K
Relocation & onboarding $10 K – $20 K
New 2025 supplemental fee $100 K
Total per employee = $120 K – $135 K
So, if a company plans to bring in 20 engineers from abroad, that’s roughly $2 million in visa-related costs alone – before you even consider salaries or housing.
And these costs aren’t shared. They’re paid entirely by the sponsoring U.S. company.
Money aside, time is another major pain point.
  • There’s a yearly cap of just 85,000 visas, which gets filled within days.
  • Approval timelines can stretch for months, especially with the new backlog.
  • Even if you clear the lottery, your application can still face extra scrutiny or requests for more documentation.
In other words, the process isn’t just expensive – it’s unpredictable. For growing tech companies or startups, that uncertainty can bring entire projects to a halt.
And even after spending that much, there’s no guarantee those engineers will get approved on time, or at all. That’s the reality many U.S. businesses are facing right now.
So, what’s the alternative?  

If bringing talent to the U.S. has become this complicated, why not bring the work to the talent instead? Let’s explore how offshore development and remote hiring can help and how SculptSoft makes it effortless.

Better Ways to Build Your Tech Team Without H-1B Visas

Many U.S. companies today are finding the H-1B visa process slower, costlier, and far less predictable than ever before. Companies are now shifting their hiring approach – finding new, smarter ways to build strong tech teams without the need for visas or relocation. Thanks to today’s digital infrastructure, cloud collaboration tools, and trusted offshore partners, companies can access top global talent remotely and keep their projects running smoothly, no matter where their engineers are located.
Let’s look at two proven approaches that have helped U.S. companies continue growing even after the new H-1B changes.
A. Offshore Development Centers (ODCs)
An Offshore Development Center (ODC) works like your own satellite office in another country, typically managed by a local partner such as SculptSoft.
You get the benefit of having a dedicated, full-time team working exclusively on your projects, while SculptSoft handles everything from hiring and HR to compliance, IT setup, and infrastructure.
In short, you focus on your product; we take care of everything else.
Why Offshore Development Centers Are a Game-Changer
  • Lower Costs, Higher Efficiency: Operating a tech team in India can reduce development costs by up to 60% compared to hiring locally in the U.S.
  • Access to a Skilled Talent Pool: India has over 5 million software professionals experienced in areas like AI, cloud, data engineering, and full-stack development and many more.
  • Faster Scalability: Need to double your team size in a month? Offshore models make it easy to scale up or down quickly.
  • Around-the-Clock Productivity: While your U.S. team signs off for the day, your India-based team keeps the work moving.
Example in Action
A U.S.-based SaaS company wanted to speed up its product roadmap but couldn’t afford to wait for H-1B approvals. SculptSoft helped set up a 25-member offshore development center in India within six weeks. The team was fully equipped, aligned with U.S. working hours, and connected through the client’s tools (Slack, Jira, and GitHub).
Result: The company achieved significant cost savings, delivered projects twice as fast, and faced no visa-related hurdles.
B. Remote Engineering Teams
If you don’t need an entire offshore center, you can still hire dedicated remote developers who work directly with your U.S. team from India.
These developers are not freelancers – they’re full-time engineers employed and managed by SculptSoft, completely aligned with your culture, processes, and time zones. This setup is perfect for startups and growing businesses that need flexibility without heavy operational overhead.
How Remote Teams Work
  • Developers work remotely from India, no visas, relocation, or waiting periods.
  • They integrate seamlessly into your team through tools like Slack, Jira, Zoom, GitHub, and Azure DevOps.
  • SculptSoft handles hiring, HR, payroll, and compliance, giving you a ready-to-go engineering extension of your team.
Why U.S. Companies Prefer Remote Teams
  • Quick Onboarding: Hire top-tier engineers and start projects in 2–3 weeks, not months.
  • Real-Time Collaboration: We ensure overlapping hours between India and U.S. time zones for smooth communication.
  • Full Transparency: You get daily updates, sprint reports, and clear visibility into performance.
  • Scalable and Cost-Efficient: Scale up or down anytime, with no visa or legal restrictions.
Remote engineering teams allow you to operate globally without the need for physical relocation giving you flexibility, speed, and cost control.

Key Advantages of Partnering with SculptSoft

Making the most of the offshore advantages of working with SculptSoft to build your remote tech team offers clear benefits for faster, easier, and more cost-effective project management. 
  1. No Visa Hassles, No Delays

    Skip the expensive, time-consuming H-1B visa process. SculptSoft helps you onboard skilled engineers quickly, so your projects start on time – without waiting months for approvals or facing unpredictable lottery outcomes.

  2. Cost Efficiency & Predictable Budgets

    Hiring offshore engineers through SculptSoft can cut development costs significantly compared to on-site U.S. hires. With transparent pricing, there are no hidden fees, relocation expenses, and unexpected legal costs.

  3. Rapid Scaling & Flexibility

    Whether you need to double your team for a major project or scale down after a sprint, SculptSoft makes it easy to adjust team size as your needs evolve without the administrative burden.

  4. Seamless Collaboration & Integration

    Our engineers work in sync with your U.S. team using tools like Slack, Jira, Zoom, and GitHub. Overlapping work hours, clear reporting, and daily updates ensure smooth collaboration as if the team were next door.

  5. Secure & Compliant Operations

    Data security, IP protection, and local regulatory compliance are handled by SculptSoft, giving you peace of mind while your remote team focuses on delivering results.

  6. Access to Top Global Talent

    India alone has over 5 million highly skilled software professionals. SculptSoft connects you with experienced engineers across AI, cloud, data engineering, full-stack development, and more without you having to navigate complex hiring yourself.

The Future of Global Tech Hiring

The traditional model of hiring talent through H-1B visas is facing growing challenges. With rising fees, longer approval timelines, and stricter scrutiny, the process is no longer a reliable path for scaling tech teams in the U.S. This disruption has prompted companies to rethink how they access the skills they need and the answer increasingly lies in offshore collaboration and remote teams.  
H-1B Limitations Spotlight the Need for Offshore Collaboration
H-1B visas were designed to fill specialized skill gaps, but they come with high costs, unpredictable approval timelines, and strict quotas. For growing tech companies, these limitations can:
  • Delay critical projects
  • Inflate budgets
  • Create uncertainty in team planning
By shifting to offshore models or remote hiring models, companies can sidestep these constraints entirely. Instead of bringing talent to the U.S., businesses can bring the work to where the talent already exists, maintaining momentum without administrative roadblocks.
Remote & Offshore Teams: The New Standard
Globalization and advanced collaboration tools have made it possible to manage high-performing teams anywhere in the world. Offshore and remote teams are no longer a temporary workaround, they are becoming the preferred approach for sustainable growth:
  • Continuous Productivity: Teams in multiple time zones can keep projects moving 24/7.
  • Access to Specialized Skills: AI, cloud, data engineering, and full-stack expertise can be sourced globally.
  • Faster Scaling: Adding new team members remotely is faster, more flexible, and cost-effective.
  • Cost Efficiency: Build top-tier teams abroad at a fraction of the cost of local hires, freeing the budget for faster innovation and growth.
Companies that embrace this model can respond faster to market demands, innovate at speed, and maintain operational flexibility without being constrained by local talent shortages.
Leveraging Global Talent for Innovation & Speed
The ability to tap into global talent pools allows companies to:
  • Innovate without geographical limits
  • Test and deploy new solutions faster
  • Reduce time-to-market for critical products
  • Build resilient teams that can pivot according to project needs

By integrating offshore and remote teams into their core operations, companies gain a strategic advantage; they are no longer limited by visa bottlenecks or local talent availability. Instead, they create a truly global workforce capable of delivering high-quality solutions efficiently and consistently.

Conclusion

Building a strong tech team shouldn’t depend on unpredictable visa approvals or skyrocketing H-1B costs. With the right offshore strategy, you can access world-class engineering talent, scale quickly, and keep projects moving without disruption.

At SculptSoft, we help U.S. companies set up offshore development centers and remote engineering teams in India that operate as seamless extensions of your in-house team, secure, compliant, and built for long-term success.

Ready to reduce hiring costs, eliminate visa challenges, and scale your development capabilities globally?

Book a Free Consultation to plan your offshore/remote team setup with SculptSoft and discover how we can help you build a high-performance engineering team in India, faster and more efficiently.

Frequently Asked Questions

The H-1B visa allows U.S. companies to hire skilled foreign professionals in areas like IT, AI, data engineering, and software development. However, it has strict annual caps (85,000 visas), long approval timelines, and now a $100,000 supplemental fee (2025) for new petitions. These factors make hiring through H-1B costly, unpredictable, and unsustainable for many growing tech companies.

The most effective alternatives are Offshore Development Centers (ODCs) and Managed Remote Teams in talent-rich regions like India. These models let U.S. companies build reliable, full-time engineering teams abroad without visa hassles while maintaining continuous project delivery.

An Offshore Development Center (ODC) is a dedicated extension of your in-house team based overseas. Managed by a partner like SculptSoft, it includes full-time engineers, infrastructure, HR, and compliance support giving you long-term control, IP protection, and scalability while cutting operational costs.

SculptSoft helps U.S. businesses build secure, high-performance engineering teams in India without visa delays. As an AWS Select Tier Partner with 12+ years of expertise in AI, cloud, and data engineering, SculptSoft offers cost-efficient, compliant, and scalable offshore solutions tailored for startups, SMBs, and enterprises.

The main risks are data security, communication gaps, and cultural alignment. These are mitigated by working with certified partners like SculptSoft, which ensures ISO 27001-based security, NDA/IP protection, dedicated project managers, and overlapping U.S. time zones.