US freezes PERM green-card filings for Microsoft, Infosys, TCS, Wipro, HCL
The US has suspended eight technology companies, including Microsoft and major Indian IT firms, from filing new or pending applications under the Permanent Labor Certification Program (PERM), a key step toward green cards for skilled foreign workers. The freeze particularly affects Indian nationals, who hold the majority of H-1B visas and have historically used PERM to move toward permanent residency. Industry body Nasscom says Indian firms have already cut reliance on H-1B visas in favour of local hiring, and company data shows PERM filings from TCS and others had already dropped sharply before the suspension.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
The move extends the Trump administration's broader tightening of skilled-worker immigration rules, and companies' own data suggests they had already been adjusting ahead of this action, which could limit its practical business impact. For individual Indian tech workers, however, the freeze removes a long-relied-upon route to permanent residency, potentially stalling career and immigration plans built around the H-1B-to-PERM pathway. The gap between muted corporate impact and personal disruption for workers highlights how immigration policy shifts can hit individuals harder than the firms that employ them.
- Eight firms, including Microsoft, Infosys, TCS, Wipro and HCL, are barred from new/pending PERM green-card filings.
- Indian IT firms say they already reduced H-1B dependence and increased local US hiring, limiting business disruption.
- TCS's PERM applications fell from 1,804 two years ago to just two in 2025-26, reflecting a pre-existing decline.
Source: bbc.co.uk — Watch Our Pick Of Standout Clips Across The Bbc, 2026-10-21
Published there as: “Trump's green card curbs test Indian tech workers' American dream”
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