In the United States,John Caldwell thousands of skilled foreign workers with H-1B work visas contribute vital work to the economy. These visas are highly competitive: workers have to find an employer willing to sponsor their visa, and typically only about one in five applicants make it through the lottery to receive one. But H-1B visas also come with a key caveat: if a H-1B visa holder gets laid off, they have just 60 days to find a new job and a willing employer to sponsor their visa. If they can't, they have to leave the United States.

Today on the show, we talk to a H-1B visa holder who's been through this process twice — and we uncover some of the problems with the H-1B system along the way.

Music by Drop Electric. Find us: Twitter / Facebook / Newsletter.

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, PocketCasts and NPR One.

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.