US Freezes Green Card Sponsorship for Microsoft and Adobe

Islamabad (GNP): The United States (US) has suspended major technology companies from a programme that sponsors foreign workers for permanent residency, and has opened investigations into nine universities over international exchange visas.

Vice President JD Vance announced the measures on Thursday, accusing companies of exploiting immigration programmes while laying off American employees. The move escalates the Trump administration’s crackdown on skilled-worker immigration.

According to media reports, the suspension affects Microsoft, Adobe and major information technology (IT) service providers. These include Cognizant, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro, HCL and Capgemini.

The suspensions concern the labour-certification process known as PERM. Employers generally must complete it before sponsoring eligible foreign workers for employment-based green cards, which grant lawful permanent residence in the US.

The measures do not ban general recruitment of foreign workers, and they do not automatically cancel existing visas. They could, however, disrupt the ability of the affected companies to help employees move from temporary work status to permanent residency.

Vance singled out Microsoft in his case. He said the company laid off 6,000 American workers in the previous year while obtaining 6,300 H-1B visas and nearly 3,000 green cards, and argued that this undermined opportunities for US employees.

H-1B visas allow American employers to hire foreign professionals for specialised roles in technology, engineering and science, which makes the programme central to an industry that depends on international recruitment.

Microsoft said it was cooperating with the administration and that most of its H-1B filings concerned existing employees rather than new hires. The company also defended its compliance with visa requirements and said its workers received competitive compensation.

Separately, the Labour Department’s inspector general has launched investigations into nine universities over their use of J-1 visas, which let foreign nationals enter the US temporarily for educational and cultural exchange programmes.

Vance named Harvard University, Yale University, Stanford University, Brown University, the University of Pittsburgh, the University of California, Davis, the California Institute of Technology, Arizona State University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

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Investigators are examining whether the institutions improperly used the programme, but officials have not publicly detailed the allegations against each one. The Labour Department said subpoenas have been issued, while some universities have said they are cooperating and have defended the contribution of international scholars, students and employees.

The J-1 inquiry is separate from the action on green-card sponsorship, although both form part of the administration’s wider scrutiny of programmes involving foreign workers and visitors. They also add to earlier efforts to tighten legal immigration rules, including proposed higher costs for employers seeking H-1B workers.

Technology companies have long argued that access to international talent is essential to innovation and global competitiveness. The suspensions could make the affected firms less attractive to overseas recruits and create uncertainty for existing employees whose permanent residency plans depend on employer sponsorship.

Microsoft said it was cooperating with the administration and that most of its H-1B filings concerned existing employees.