I think that nuance is fairly unwarranted when you observe the American system through the lens the laws ask you to view it through.
The American H1B system isn't about importing foreign workers that do a good job, it's about importing foreign workers that do a job no American could do. The system demands you look for some American do do the job first, and only if you fail to find one can you import one from overseas.
In that view, all the talk about GPA fall flat, because it doesn't matter if the foreign worker is better than an American worker, you are supposed to pick the American worker anyway.
I’ve rarely seen them used for that purpose, but of course that’s my personal observation and I have no data about it. A lot of H1B folks I worked with were solid backend/mobile devs. I enjoyed working with most of them but it’d be a stretch to say they were uniquely qualified. I do notice they feel a lot of pressure to never push back on anything due to how they set up the H1B system. Not always the case but often. I always felt that they were being exploited in that way.
The American H1B system isn't about importing foreign workers that do a good job, it's about importing foreign workers that do a job no American could do. The system demands you look for some American do do the job first, and only if you fail to find one can you import one from overseas.
In that view, all the talk about GPA fall flat, because it doesn't matter if the foreign worker is better than an American worker, you are supposed to pick the American worker anyway.