28-Year-Old Google Employee On H1B Visa Weighs Return To India, Redditors Respond
The woman shared that her parents were initially hesitant about the move, but agreed to it under the hope she would return from the US after three years.
A 28-year-old software engineer at Google, currently on an H1B visa in the United States, is considering moving back to India. The woman moved to the US in 2021 for her master’s degree, leaving a stable job at Apple.
In a post on Reddit, the woman shared that her parents were initially hesitant about the move, but agreed to it under the hope she would return after three years.
“But then life happened. After moving here, I met my boyfriend. We’ve been together for 3.5 years and have been living together for 2.5 years. We’re planning to get married next year. The tricky part is that he never wants to move back to India. That was part of his reason for coming to the US. He has a stable job and an H1B visa too,” she shared the post in r/returntoindia community on Thursday.
Her post further read that the couple is unlikely to experience any issues with jobs moving back to India. She also mentioned that her partner would like to save enough to retire early.
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“Most days I’m content here. But sometimes, I miss home so much. Especially when my mom says she misses me or my brother, who’s now in Canada (they were against that too, but I convinced them… so I carry guilt about that as well),” she noted, adding that she missed her family events and festivals.
Now, with the ongoing visa uncertainty in the United States, she is grappling with a difficult choice. “My boyfriend says that with the visa uncertainty, we don’t know how long we can even stay here. But I do know one thing - I’m not sure I want to live far away from my family forever,” she said.
Concluding her post, the woman sought advice from fellow Redditors, wanting to know if moving back is worth it.
Reacting to the post, a person currently living in the US shared their perspective, noting that they’ve been in the country for 16 years but still don’t feel a sense of belonging.
“I'm moving back next month, it’s not an overnight decision; I’ve let it ponder for over a year and finally took the plunge. My parents are aging and I want to be closer to them,” the user commented.
Another user suggested deciding after setting clear long-term goals. “Make a long-term goal in your life, like what do you want in your life in 5 years? House, family, kids, pension, etc. Then take the steps which make you closer to that goal,” the user advised.
A user who claimed to employ H1B hires shared that working on an H1B is likely to become increasingly difficult over the next few years.
“My opinion is, continue as long as you have a paid salary, and move back within 2 months of layoffs if no job is found,” the comment read.
