Trump said he wanted more 'highly skilled' immigrants to come to the US. But skilled, educated foreign workers are leaving the US dejected, saying Trump doomed their American dreams ? leaving businesses in the lurch.

"I didn't think his policies were going to affect H-1B visas — people who work hard and are educated and who follow all the rules," Wang told INSIDER. In some ways it maybe disappointed me about America." Wang was one of 85,000 skilled foreign workers selected annually by lottery as part of the highly competitive H-1B visa program, which grants three-year visas to workers who have already secured jobs and sponsorship from employers in the US. Smith Collection via Getty Images But Wang's hopes were dashed on January 4, 2019, when USCIS formally denied his petition for the H-1B visa that would have allowed him to continue working at Seagate, according to documents INSIDER viewed. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/Mark Hoffman via Getty Images Several of the hurdles Wang faced during his H-1B application process can be traced back to the Buy American, Hire American executive order Trump signed on April 18, 2017. "There seems to be a resistance on the part of USCIS of almost all H-1B cases, because they are looking to see, 'Is this consistent with this directive that Americans should buy American goods and hire American workers?'" Jafri said. Associated Press/Susan Walsh But despite the crackdown on H-1B visas, in recent weeks Trump has sought to reassure the tens of thousands of international students and would-be foreign workers vying for work permits that his administration will reform the H-1B process to make things easier for them. I think if you look at the actions, there are actions they could take to make improved policies, but we haven't seen them taken." Read more: Rejections for standard work-visas have shot up under the Trump administration, but some companies have avoided the trend Instead, data show that the Trump administration has begun denying and delaying H-1B visa petitions at a much faster rate than under previous administrations. Petitions for workers should be mailed to the unemployment office, not USCIS." Read more: An unauthorized immigrant who makes Trump's bed at his Bedminster golf resort says 'we are tired of the abuse, the insults, the way he talks about us' But Anderson said there's no evidence to suggest that H-1B visa holders like Wang take Americans' jobs.