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US suspends TCS, Infosys, Wipro and HCL from PERM green card programme

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The United States on Thursday, 8 October 2026, suspended Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, Wipro, HCL, Cognizant and Capgemini, along with Microsoft and Adobe, from the PERM green card programme, the Labor Department step employers must clear before sponsoring most foreign workers for permanent residency. Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling announced the move at a Washington press conference led by Vice President JD Vance, CNBC and Reuters reported.

Key facts

  • 8 companies named: TCS, Infosys, Wipro, HCL, Cognizant, Capgemini, Microsoft, Adobe
  • Blocked: all new and pending PERM labour certification applications from these firms
  • Reason given for Microsoft and Adobe: “multiple active federal investigations”
  • Announced: 8 October 2026, Washington

What the PERM green card suspension means

Under PERM, an employer must certify to the Labor Department that no qualified, willing and available US worker exists for a role. Approval lets the company file an immigrant petition for that worker. Sonderling said the department “will not accept any new or process any pending permanent labor certification applications involving these companies.”

Immigration reporting cited by News18 says the suspension does not automatically cancel green card cases that are already approved, but it leaves future employer-sponsored applications in doubt.

Why Washington acted

Sonderling said that since 2009 the named companies had received over 230,000 H-1B approvals and more than 100,000 permanent labour certifications. Vance accused Microsoft of laying off about 6,000 American workers while employing 6,300 H-1B visa holders, CNN and The Times of India reported. Microsoft did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“Our message to Microsoft is: You’re a great American company, but you’ve got to hire great American workers.”

— JD Vance, US Vice President, as reported by Reuters

The step follows the Labor Department’s suspension of Cognizant’s PERM filings in September. Vance also said nine universities, including Harvard, Yale and Stanford, would be investigated over alleged visa misuse.

Why it matters

For Indian engineers working at these firms in the US on H-1B visas, PERM is usually the first step towards a green card. With new and pending filings frozen, that route is now on hold for employees of all eight companies, and officials did not say how long the suspension will last.

Source: CNBC, Reuters via CNA, News18, The Times of India, CNN

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