The US Suspends PERM for Microsoft, Adobe and Infosys: What It Means for H-1B Engineers
On October 8, 2026 the US Department of Labor stopped accepting and processing PERM applications from eight technology employers. This is not your H-1B: what is frozen is the first step of the green card, and only at those eight companies.
What the Department of Labor Announced on October 8
Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling and Vice President JD Vance announced that the Department of Labor (DOL) is suspending eight employers from the PERM programme, the labour certification that is the first step in most employment-based green cards. In practice: new applications from those companies are not being accepted and, according to reports, applications already pending are not being processed either. No end date has been published and no path back into the programme has been defined.
The Eight Employers on the List
Microsoft, Adobe, Cognizant, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro, HCLTech and Capgemini. Six are IT services firms and two are large product companies. The action is specific: it targets those employers, and it does not change PERM rules for everyone. If your sponsoring employer is not on the list, it should not apply to you. According to Sonderling, the eight employers have together obtained more than 100,000 permanent labour certifications since 2009.
The Grounds: Program Abuse and Open Federal Investigations
The stated grounds are allegations by the administration, not proven facts, and it is worth saying so. For Microsoft and Adobe, Sonderling cited multiple active federal investigations; Vance added that Microsoft laid off thousands of US workers while continuing to hire through H-1B and green card sponsorship. For the six services firms, the argument was the volume of certifications accumulated. With investigations still open, this is the official version of the announcement, not a ruling.
The Same Announcement About Nine Universities and the J-1 Visa
The same package included a Department of Labor inspector general investigation into alleged J-1 visa abuse at nine universities. That is a parallel matter with no link to the PERM process, and we mention it only because it was part of the same announcement and has been circulating mixed in with this story.
What PERM Is and How It Differs From the H-1B
This is mix-up number one, and the one that has produced the most false headlines. These are two different processes run by two different agencies, and the suspension touches only one of them.
The Green Card Chain: PERM, I-140, Priority Date and Adjustment of Status
The usual employment-based green card path has four steps: the PERM labour certification, filed with the Department of Labor; the I-140 petition, filed with USCIS, which sets your priority date; the wait until that date becomes current in the visa bulletin; and adjustment of status or an immigrant visa at the end. The suspension acts on the first step, not on the ones after it.
The Most Common Mix-Up: "Are They Taking My Visa Away?"
No. The H-1B is a temporary work status, while PERM is a labour certification for which the employer is responsible. The suspension does not cancel or change anyone's H-1B status or work authorisation. What stops is progress toward permanent residence, and only for people whose sponsoring employer is one of the eight named companies.
Why the Applicant Is the Employer, Not You
The employer files PERM using Form ETA 9089 to show that no available, willing and qualified US worker exists for the role. The worker is the beneficiary, not the applicant. That explains two things: why the suspension targets employers, and why your individual room to act is limited: the party that can move the case is the company, through its immigration counsel.
What Exactly Freezes (and What Doesn't)
New and Pending Applications: Neither Accepted Nor Processed
What is confirmed: new applications from the eight employers are not being accepted. What is reported, and still waiting on written DOL guidance: applications already in progress are on hold. Either way it means the same for anyone waiting: the clock on the process stops.
What Is Already Approved and What Belongs to Another Agency
An I-140 already filed or approved belongs to USCIS, not the Department of Labor, so it does not fall because of this announcement. That said, in all honesty: how each specific case is treated, including cases already certified, is not yet clear, and the DOL has not released detailed written guidance. For that, the only valid answer is your immigration attorney, not an article.
No End Date: What "While the Suspension Remains in Effect" Means
No end date has been announced, and that is the single biggest uncertainty today. Without a date you cannot plan twelve months out, which is why the practical advice is to work from what is confirmed rather than from invented scenarios.
If You Work at One of the Eight: Three Questions, Five Minutes
- Is your sponsoring employer on the list of eight? If not, this suspension does not apply to you.
- Which stage are you at: PERM not started, PERM pending, PERM certified, I-140 filed or approved, or waiting on a priority date?
- What has your company or the attorney handling the case told you in writing?
Is Your Sponsoring Employer on the List?
Check which legal entity your sponsorship is filed under: at large services firms, the entity that signs may not be the brand on your contract. If in doubt, the right people to ask are your HR team or your employer's immigration counsel.
Which Stage of the Green Card Are You At?
Anyone who had not started PERM cannot start it through that route while the suspension lasts. Anyone with a pending PERM waits without processing. Anyone whose I-140 is already approved is in the strongest position, because that step does not depend on the DOL.
What Microsoft and TCS Actually Said
TCS said its hiring strategy is unchanged and that it will hire 15,000 more people in the United States, noting that it filed a single-digit number of PERM applications over the past two years. Microsoft, for its part, has maintained that most of its visa applications were extensions or local hiring. These are statements from interested parties: useful for understanding their position, not independent evidence.
The Options That Remain (and the Ones That Don't)
Green Card Routes That Skip PERM
There are routes that do not depend on a labour certification, such as certain EB-1 categories or national interest waivers. Whether one fits your profile depends on your case and your employer, and an immigration attorney decides that with your documents in front of them. There are no shortcuts you can summarise in a paragraph, and anyone selling them that way is oversimplifying.
Switching Employers, H-1B Transfer and What to Check Before Signing
Changing employers does not automatically fix the situation: the part of the process that depended on the previous sponsor restarts, and timing and priority date have to be assessed. What is always worth doing, and more so now, is to ask in writing what sponsorship a company offers before signing an offer: whether it includes a green card, on what timeline and under what conditions.
What Not to Do: Waiting in Silence or Trusting a Forum
Do not make decisions based on what you read in a group chat, and do not assume a generic email from your employer resolves your case. Ask for a written answer about your specific situation and keep every document in the process.
Why This Matters Beyond the Eight Employers
The Spotlight on the Outsourcing Model
The underlying message is that the administration is focusing on the outsourcing model and on the use of green card sponsorship as part of a hiring package. For other employers, the reasonable reading is that scrutiny of PERM goes up: documented recruitment and cases filed early sit in a better position than cases still waiting to start.
India's Response and the Message for Would-Be Migrants
On October 9 India's Ministry of External Affairs called Vance's comments about H-1B workers "deeply offensive," and noted that the PERM suspension does not by itself affect the validity of existing H-1B visas. For anyone outside the United States weighing job offers, the practical conclusion is concrete: what changes is which companies can offer a green card today, and it reinforces the importance of asking about sponsorship in writing before you sign.
Conclusion
Who has nothing to do: anyone who does not work, or plan to work, at the eight named companies, anyone with an approved I-140, and anyone on H-1B who is not pursuing a green card right now. Who should act this week: anyone with a pending PERM at one of those companies, or who expected to start one, and who should ask their employer and immigration counsel in writing for the real status of their case. What remains unconfirmed: how long the suspension lasts, how already-certified cases are treated, and whether a settlement or review follows. This is an open process, and we will keep covering the next chapters on this blog.
