Since opening our doors in 1993, Trow & Rahal has helped obtain visas for hundreds of employers who are bringing educated international professionals to work in America. In that time I have seen a dramatic shift in our immigration laws, and I firmly believe the U.S. government is building an “invisible fence” around our borders. In my opinion, this is not healthy for the fiscal future of the country.

Here’s why: If you build a tangible fence with gates, people know there is a barrier to entry and they can plan accordingly if they want to come through. But if you build an invisible fence, people can’t see it until they crash into it. There’s no way for them to plan or prepare, and so they plan to go elsewhere. That’s the unfortunate situation we are finding ourselves in today.

The result, I worry, is that a lot of creative and innovative people are being driven away, or are giving up on trying to come to the US, because of a lack of transparency regarding the rules.

It’s incredibly frustrating for companies to hire foreign nationals or to bring foreign nationals from offices abroad when the rules for who can work in the country change regularly, and with no prior notice. Plus, there is inconsistent decision making, which makes the system less predictable. What worked yesterday may not work today or tomorrow.

The bottom line is that this invisible fence is keeping the wrong people out.