US freezes green card sponsorship at Infosys, TCS, Wipro, HCL, Microsoft and three others
Representative image: smaus / Pixabay
The US Labor Department on October 8, 2026 barred eight employers, including Infosys, TCS, Wipro and HCL, from PERM green card filings, with no end date.
What Happened
The United States Department of Labor on Thursday, October 8, 2026 suspended eight large employers from PERM, the labour certification programme that is the first step for most employer-sponsored green cards. US Vice President JD Vance announced the move alongside Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling. The companies named were Microsoft and Adobe, and six IT services firms: Cognizant, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Wipro, HCL Technologies and Capgemini. While the suspension lasts, these employers cannot file new PERM applications or get decisions on applications already pending. Vance accused the companies of replacing American workers with foreign ones; Microsoft disputed his figures. No end date has been set.
Key Facts
- The suspension was announced on October 8, 2026 and covers eight employers.
- Four of the IT services firms named, Infosys, TCS, Wipro and HCL Technologies, are Indian companies.
- Under the suspension, the firms can neither file new PERM labour certifications nor receive decisions on pending ones.
- H-1B work status is not suspended, so employees already in the US on H-1B visas are not directly affected.
- Vance said Microsoft laid off about 6,000 American workers last year while getting 6,300 H-1B visas and about 3,000 green cards; Microsoft said about 80% of its H-1B filings were for people who already worked for it.
- Cognizant's new PERM filings had already been suspended in September 2026 by the Labor Department's Inspector General during a fraud investigation.
Why It Matters
For many Indian professionals in the US, a green card is the end goal of a long career plan. The usual path runs from an H-1B work visa to an employer-sponsored green card, and PERM is the step where the employer has to show the Labor Department that it could not find a suitable American worker for the job. If the employer is barred from PERM, that path is blocked, however long the employee has waited.
A freeze at the PERM stage adds a new delay for anyone whose sponsor is on the list. Four of the firms named are Indian IT companies that send engineers to work for clients in the US, so the number of Indians with stalled plans could be significant, although no official count of affected applications has been published.
The action also matters for students and young engineers weighing a US career. Jobs with large IT services firms have long been a common route to the US. A sponsor that can be suspended from the green card process without warning makes that route less predictable, and candidates may now ask more questions about a company's immigration record before accepting an offer. Legal challenges are possible, and the companies' own responses will shape what happens next.
| Item | Status after October 8 suspension |
|---|---|
| New PERM filings by named firms | Not allowed |
| Pending PERM applications of named firms | No decisions while suspended |
| H-1B status of current employees | Not suspended |
| End date | None announced |
Impact
Short-term: Employees of the eight firms who were about to start or were waiting on the PERM stage of their green card are on hold, and the firms will be seeking clarity from the Labor Department.
Long-term: If the suspension lasts or spreads to other employers, the US green card route through IT services firms becomes less reliable, which could push Indian talent towards other countries or towards employers outside the list.
Who is affected: Indian and other foreign workers sponsored by Microsoft, Adobe, Cognizant, Infosys, TCS, Wipro, HCL Technologies and Capgemini; their families; and students planning careers in the US tech sector.
Key Takeaway
The US has frozen the green card sponsorship process at eight major employers, including Infosys, TCS, Wipro and HCL, putting many Indian tech workers' plans on hold.
Questions and Answers
What is PERM?
PERM is the US Labor Department's permanent labour certification process, in which an employer shows it could not find a suitable US worker; it is the first step for most employer-sponsored green cards.
Which companies were suspended on October 8, 2026?
Microsoft, Adobe, Cognizant, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro, HCL Technologies and Capgemini.
Will H-1B workers at these companies lose their visas?
No. The suspension covers the PERM green card step; H-1B status itself has not been suspended.
How long will the freeze last?
No end date has been announced, so affected workers should follow updates from their employer and the Labor Department.
Disclaimer: Prepared by the Peepals newsroom from publicly available sources with AI assistance. Information is accurate to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication and may change. Images may be representative. Not professional advice. Report an error via our contact page.
Sourced and fact-checked by the Peepals Global Editorial Team
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Reported, fact-checked and published by the Peepals Global Editorial Team.
