Microsoft, Adobe Suspended From Green Card Program

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The Labor Department suspended Microsoft, Adobe, Infosys, Wipro, Tata, Cognizant and others from the PERM green card program over alleged H-1B abuse, Vance said.

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The U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday suspended Microsoft, Adobe, Cognizant, Infosys, Capgemini, Tata, Wipro and HCL from the Permanent Labor Certification (PERM) program. Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling announced the move alongside Vice President JD Vance at a White House press conference, citing multiple active federal investigations. The department will no longer accept or process PERM applications from the eight companies. No end date was given.

What Did Vance Say About Microsoft?

Vance singled out Microsoft as the worst offender among the companies named. "There has been no company in the United States, unfortunately, that has abused the system more than Microsoft," he said. He asserted that Microsoft laid off 6,000 American workers while receiving about 6,300 H-1B approvals and nearly 3,000 green cards. His message to the company was that it must "hire great American workers."

Sonderling said the companies named had requested almost 3 million foreign workers since 2009. They received more than 230,000 H-1B approvals and over 100,000 permanent labor certifications.

How Did Microsoft and the Market Respond?

Microsoft rejected the characterization, saying the vast majority of its U.S. employees are American. It said 80% of its roughly 6,000 H-1B applications last fiscal year were for existing employees, and that only about 1% of its U.S. workforce came from new H-1B filings for new hires. Adobe (NASDAQ: ADBE) did not immediately comment.

Shares moved unevenly. Microsoft fell about 1.5%, while Adobe rose about 2.3%. Among the IT services names, Cognizant (NASDAQ: CTSH) gained about 3.9% and Infosys (NYSE: INFY) rose about 0.6%. Wipro (NYSE: WIT) slipped about 0.9%.

What Does the PERM Suspension Mean in Practice?

PERM is the Labor Department certification that an employer must obtain before it can sponsor a foreign worker for an employment-based green card. Without it, the green card process cannot begin. Pending applications also stall, and employers that have already run recruitment tests may see that work wasted if the suspension lasts.

The impact falls hardest on H-1B workers from India, who receive nearly three-quarters of approved H-1B visas and face green card backlogs longer than the six-year H-1B limit. A pending or certified green card process is what allows these workers to extend their status past six years. Without it, some could be forced to leave the country.

Vance said the suspensions will stay "as long as it needs to," and that the administration can extend them indefinitely. He said the aim is to push companies to change their hiring practices.

Wider Enforcement Push

The announcement was part of a broader crackdown on visa programs. The administration also opened investigations into a group of universities, including Harvard and Stanford, over international student and exchange visa programs.

What Comes Next?

The immediate question is whether the affected companies can end the suspensions by changing hiring and sponsorship practices, or whether the federal investigations lead to formal penalties. No written agency order or legal filing detailing the suspension's basis has been published, which leaves open how and when a company could regain access. Legal challenges from employers or affected workers are possible. The six Indian and European IT services firms, which depend on H-1B labor more heavily than Microsoft or Adobe, face the greatest long-term exposure in their U.S. staffing models.

Outlook

The suspension is the most direct action yet against large employers' use of the H-1B and green card system. The near-term effects are workforce uncertainty for thousands of visa holders and added regulatory risk for companies that rely on foreign technical talent. The duration of the suspension and the outcome of the federal investigations will determine whether this becomes a lasting change in sponsorship rules or a short-term pressure campaign.