The Trump administration on Thursday suspended several major technology and IT outsourcing companies, including Cognizant, Infosys, Tata, Wipro, HCL, Capgemini, Microsoft and Adobe, from the US government’s Permanent Labour Certification Programme, or PERM, a key step in the process of obtaining employment-based green cards for foreign workers, including many H-1B visa holders.
US Labour Secretary Keith Sonderling announced the move alongside Vice President JD Vance and the head of the US Anti-Fraud Task Force, accusing companies of misusing employment-visa programmes and taking jobs away from American workers.
“I am hereby suspending from the Permanent Labour Certification Programme some of the largest IT outsourcing firms in the world, Cognizant, Infosys, Tata, Wipro, HCL, and Capgemini,” Sonderling said.
He added that the Department of Labour was also suspending Microsoft and Adobe from the programme.
“We will not accept any new or process any pending permanent labour certification applications involving these companies,” Sonderling said.
Reuters reported that the administration cited alleged fraud and said the action was part of a broader push to make companies hire more American workers.
What the US is alleging
The latest action follows a broader crackdown by the Trump administration on programmes that allow companies to employ foreign workers.
Vance has accused Microsoft of using the system to replace American workers with foreign employees. The Associated Press reported that Vance pointed to Microsoft’s layoffs and its use of H-1B visas as evidence of what he described as abuse of the system.
“If you do the math, for every worker that Microsoft laid off, they replaced that worker with one and a half foreign indentured servants,” Vance said.
Microsoft has not immediately responded to requests for comment, Reuters and Associated Press reported.
Sonderling said the companies named by the administration had collectively sought large numbers of foreign workers over the years.
“Since 2009, just these companies alone have requested almost three million foreign workers. They’ve received over 230,000 H-1B visa approvals and over 100,000 permanent labour certifications,” he said.
“That’s hundreds of thousands of jobs that were taken from American workers,” Sonderling added.
The administration’s claims about individual companies and the alleged impact on American workers remain allegations; the suspension itself concerns their participation in the PERM programme.
What is the PERM programme?
PERM, short for Permanent Labour Certification, is a Department of Labour process through which an employer usually has to establish that there are no qualified, willing and available US workers for a particular job before sponsoring an eligible foreign worker for permanent employment.
It is an important step in many employment-based green-card cases. The Department of Labour describes permanent labour certification as allowing an employer to hire a foreign worker to work permanently in the United States.
The suspension, therefore, affects the green-card pathway, rather than automatically cancelling an employee’s H-1B visa.
That distinction is important for thousands of foreign technology workers. An H-1B is a temporary work status for specialised occupations, while PERM is linked to the process of obtaining permanent employment and, ultimately, a green card.
Why this matters for Indian IT workers
The action has particular significance for Indian technology professionals because major Indian IT companies such as Infosys, Tata, Wipro and HCL have substantial operations in the US and employ workers through the country’s skilled-worker immigration system.
The H-1B programme is particularly important to Indian professionals. AP reported that technology companies are the biggest users of H-1B visas, with nearly three-quarters of approvals going to workers from India.
In September, the US had suspended Cognizant’s PERM filings amid a federal investigation into alleged fraud involving employment-visa programmes, a move that raised concerns among Indian technology workers seeking employer-sponsored green cards.
Now, the inclusion of Infosys, Tata, Wipro and HCL, alongside Microsoft, Adobe, Cognizant and Capgemini, brings several of the industry’s biggest employers under the latest PERM restrictions.
Does this mean H-1B visas are suspended?
No. The announcement does not amount to a blanket cancellation of H-1B visas for employees of the affected companies.
The immediate action concerns new and pending PERM labour-certification applications involving the named companies. The eventual effect on individual workers will depend on where their employment-based immigration case is in the green-card process.
The PERM action comes as the Trump administration steps up scrutiny of foreign-worker and international-student programmes.
On Wednesday, the Department of Homeland Security proposed a $70,000 fee for international students participating in the Optional Practical Training programme, according to AP. OPT allows eligible international students to work in jobs related to their field of study during or after their education in the US.
The Labour Department has also launched investigations involving universities. Reuters reported that nine universities, including Harvard, Yale and Stanford, are being investigated over allegations involving international students and wages, with subpoenas issued by the department’s inspector general.
