Infosys agrees to record U.S. immigration settlement

infosys shibulal
Infosys, an Indian company led by S. D. Shibual, has reached a record $34 million settlement with federal prosecutors to settle allegations of visa fraud and abuse of the immigration process.

The Indian company Infosys has reached a record $34 million settlement with federal prosecutors in Texas, to settle "allegations of systemic visa fraud and abuse of immigration processes."

The U.S. Attorney's Office of the Eastern District in Texas said that this is the largest payment ever levied in an immigration case.

The government accused software developer Infosys (INFY) of using workers with B-1 visas, which only allow temporary entry into the U.S. for business purposes, to perform skilled labor jobs.

The U.S. said these jobs should only be performed by workers with H-1B visas, which allow foreign nationals to enter the U.S. to perform a specialty occupation.

The government accused Infosys (INFY), a software developer, of using B-1 visa holders to perform skilled labor jobs that were supposed to be done by "legitimate" holders of H-1B visas.

The settlement says Infosys submitted letters to U.S. Consular Officials that "contained false statements regarding the true purpose of a B-1 visa holder's travel in order to deceive U.S. Consular Officials and secure entry of the visa holder into the United States."

It also says that Infosys issued a "dos" and "don'ts" memorandum directing B-1 visa holders "to deceive U.S. Consular Officials, including specific instructions to avoid certain terminology, to secure entry of the visa holder in the United States." The memo allegedly included instructions to avoid using words like "work" and "contract" in certain communications with U.S. officials.

Infosys said it agreed to a civil settlement "relating to I-9 paperwork errors and visa matters that were the subject of the investigation. There were no criminal charges or court rulings against the company."

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