US Suspends Permanent Labor Certification Processing for Microsoft and Other Firms

New and pending applications face a pause

The US administration announced a temporary suspension of permanent labor certification processing involving Microsoft, Adobe, Cognizant, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro, HCL and Capgemini. Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling said the department would neither accept new applications nor process pending ones involving those companies.

The Permanent Labor Certification program, known as PERM, allows US employers to hire foreign workers on a permanent basis. The pause therefore affects both companies seeking to submit applications and workers whose applications are already awaiting processing.

That distinction matters for understanding the announcement. H-1B visas serve highly skilled foreign workers, but the reported suspension concerns permanent labor certification. It is not an announced blanket halt to H-1B applications.

Officials allege recruitment abuses

Vice President JD Vance alleged that the targeted companies deliberately gave domestic job openings inadequate publicity to favor international workers. He singled out Microsoft as an especially serious offender. Those statements are administration allegations, not established findings.

Labor Department Inspector-General Anthony D'Esposito said subpoenas had been served and investigations were underway. The investigation status establishes that officials are pursuing the allegations; it does not establish that the companies committed the alleged abuses.

Microsoft's defense centers on H-1B filings

Microsoft said 80 percent of approximately 6,000 H-1B applications it submitted in its last fiscal year sought extensions or status changes for existing employees. Its account draws a distinction between filings for current staff and filings for new hires.

The company said its remaining filings for new employees concerned people already legally in the United States and represented 1 percent of its US workforce. Microsoft also said the vast majority of its US employees were Americans and that its H-1B petitions met the visa category's standards.

Microsoft's figures describe its H-1B filings, while the suspension affects PERM processing. Those figures provide context for the company's defense, but do not resolve the separate allegation about how it publicized domestic job openings. For affected applicants, the immediate consequence is the announced pause on new and pending permanent labor certification applications.