The White House has barred Microsoft and seven other technology companies from filing new or pending Permanent Labour Certification Program (PERM) applications, citing alleged abuse of the H‑1B visa system.
Vice President JD Vance accused Microsoft of replacing American workers with “foreign indentured servants,” claiming the company had laid off 6,000 workers while filing 6,800 H‑1B visas in the same period. Vance also named Adobe, Cognizant, Infosys, Tata, Wipro, HCL and Capgemini in similar accusations.
Microsoft responded that most of its H‑1B filings were for existing employees and that international hires receive the same compensation as U.S. workers. The company said 80 % of its H‑1B applications were for employees already working at Microsoft, and that the median salary for an H‑1B worker at Microsoft is $155,000.
Secretary of Labour Keith Sonderling said the U.S. government would no longer process PERM applications from Microsoft and the other firms, calling them “visa mills” that are “flooding” the country with foreign workers.
The move comes after President Donald Trump awarded Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella a medal for technology innovation at a White House ceremony earlier that day.
Microsoft’s spokesperson noted that the vast majority of its U.S. workforce is American, and that the company employs more than 200,000 people worldwide.
The H‑1B program caps annual visas at 85,000 and is intended for highly skilled workers that companies cannot find domestically. The PERM process can lead to a green card for eligible workers.
With the new restrictions in place, Microsoft and the other firms must seek alternative pathways to hire international talent, while the administration signals a tougher stance on visa abuse.
