US halts green card certification processing for major tech firms
- The suspension covers Microsoft, Adobe and several major Indian IT outsourcing companies.
- Officials cited alleged fraud involving layoffs and applications to sponsor foreign workers for permanent residency.
- Separate investigations target nine leading universities over alleged misuse of exchange visitor visa programmes.
The Trump administration has suspended a key stage of employment-based green card processing for several major technology companies, citing alleged abuse of programmes used to hire foreign workers.
The action affects Microsoft, Adobe, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro and HCL Technologies. US Labour Secretary Keith Sonderling said Cognizant, Infosys and Capgemini were also covered by the measures.
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The companies will be unable to submit new permanent labour certification applications, while processing of their pending applications has been halted.
US Vice President JD Vance said investigations had uncovered alleged evidence of fraud, including instances in which companies laid off employees while seeking permanent residency for foreign workers. He singled out Microsoft, saying that a leading American company should employ the best American workers.
The suspension forms part of a broader administration crackdown on immigration programmes for skilled foreign workers. Officials said the measures were intended to address alleged visa programme abuse and protect job opportunities and wages for American workers.
The move could disrupt the usual path to permanent residency for thousands of foreign technology workers and is being described as one of the administration’s broadest actions against skilled immigration programmes.
The Department of Labour’s permanent labour certification programme, known as PERM, is required for most employment-based green card applications. Employers must demonstrate that hiring a foreign worker will not adversely affect the wages, working conditions or employment opportunities of American workers.
Once labour certification is approved, employers can proceed with the next stage of the immigration process through US Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Separately, Reuters reported that the administration had opened investigations into nine leading universities, including Harvard, Yale and Stanford. The institutions are accused of misusing exchange visitor visa programmes in ways that affected American workers’ wages.
