US suspends Infosys, TCS, Wipro, HCL, other IT firms from Green Card programme

The US Labour Department suspended major IT firms, including Infosys, TCS, Wipro and HCL, from a programme used by employers to sponsor foreign workers for permanent residency, alleging system abuse. Microsoft and Adobe were also suspended amid federal investigations, while nine universities face probes over alleged wage undercutting.US targets Infosys, TCS, Wipro, HCL over labour programme as Vance attacks H-1B systemNew Delhi,Oct 8, 2026 20:57 ISTThe US Department of Labour has suspended some of the world’s largest IT outsourcing firms, including Infosys, TCS, Wipro and HCL, from the Permanent Labour Certification Program (PERM), accusing companies of abusing the system for foreign workers seeking permanent residency.PERM is the official approval given by the US Department of Labour that enables an employer to hire foreign works for a permanent Green Card.US Labour Secretary Keith Sonderling announced the action against Cognizant, Infosys, Tata, Wipro, HCL and Capgemini, while also suspending Microsoft and Adobe from the programme, citing multiple active federal investigations.“There has been no company in the United States, unfortunately, that has abused this system more than Microsoft,” Sonderling said. US Vice President JD Vance said Microsoft laid off 6,000 American workers in 2025 after certifying that it could not find qualified American employees, yet was approved for more than 6,000 H-1B visas and filed 3,682 PERM applications. He said nearly 1,000 of those applications were for the same positions from which American workers had been laid off.Vance said the H-1B visa programme was intended to allow companies to bring in “the best of the best” from outside the US for positions that could not be filled by American workers, but alleged that the programme had become “rife with fraud.” The Labour Department's action also extends to nine universities, including Harvard, Yale and Stanford, which Sonderling said would be investigated over allegations that they brought in international students to undercut American wages.Labor Inspector General Anthony D’Esposito said subpoenas had already been served. Microsoft did not immediately respond to a request for comment.- Ends