The U.S. Department of Labor has stopped accepting new PERM labor-certification applications and paused pending applications from Microsoft and seven technology services companies while federal officials investigate alleged abuse of employment-based immigration programs.
Vice President JD Vance announced the action Thursday, October 8. The other companies named were Adobe, Cognizant, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro, HCL Technologies and Capgemini.
What the suspension changes
PERM is the Labor Department process employers generally use to show that hiring a foreign worker for a permanent job will not adversely affect U.S. workers. A certified application can support an employment-based green-card petition.
The announced action concerns PERM applications. It does not amount to a blanket suspension of H-1B visas for the companies, and it is not a final finding that any named company committed fraud. Officials did not provide a firm end date for the pause.
Vance alleged that employers had used the process while laying off U.S. workers. Microsoft disputed the administration’s characterization. The company said about 80% of its H-1B filings in the last fiscal year extended or changed the status of existing employees, rather than bringing in new hires.
Eight companies face the PERM pause
- Microsoft
- Adobe
- Cognizant
- Infosys
- Tata Consultancy Services
- Wipro
- HCL Technologies
- Capgemini
Universities face a separate review
The administration also said it was investigating nine universities over their use of J-1 exchange visas: Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Brown, the University of Pittsburgh, the University of California, Davis, Caltech, Arizona State and MIT.
Several schools said they had received or were reviewing subpoenas and would cooperate. That university review is separate from the PERM pause affecting the eight companies.
The practical effect for workers and employers will depend on how long the investigations last and whether agencies take further action. Affected applicants should rely on official case notices or qualified immigration counsel rather than assuming every employment-visa process has stopped.
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