George Scalise, president of the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), has stated that the United States Congress has failed in resolving the problem of the H-1B visa and green card cap limits.

Scalise, speaking in an SIA webcast, said that the United States attracts the best and brightest to come and study, but problems getting visas and green cards causes them to move elsewhere.

"We really need to modify the immigration policies as it relates to the H1-B visas and green cards so that it’s really fast, efficient and certain for these young students," he said.

Scalise noted that the proposed European Union blue card scheme could lure foreign talent educated in the U.S. to the EU after graduation.

"The idea is they are going to have a very fast-track program there, so they’ll be able to attract these young people that have been educated here in our universities and bring them to Europe where they’ll be able to get the equivalent of a H1-B visa and get their green card and build their lives and careers in Europe," Scalise said.

U.S. green cards which allow permanent residence can take up to 10 years to be granted, and H-1B visas are capped at 85,000 a year. H-1B visas typically run out very quickly.

"That process is badly broken, and we’re finding great difficulty in keeping those young people," Scalise said.