US Suspends Microsoft, Adobe and Six Outsourcing Firms From PERM Green Card Program

The United States Department of Labor has stopped accepting new PERM labor certification applications from eight large employers, and has frozen pending ones. Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling named the firms on 8 October 2026 at a White House Fraud Task Force news conference led by Vice President JD Vance. The eight are Microsoft, Adobe, Cognizant, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro, HCL Technologies and Capgemini.

"We will not accept any new or process any pending permanent labor certification applications involving these companies," Sonderling said. Officials gave no end date. As of 9 October, the department had published no written order, notice or findings in the department newsroom.

If you work for one of these firms and your green card case runs through PERM, this news touches your timeline directly.

What PERM Is and Why This Step Matters

PERM is the permanent labor certification run by the Department of Labor. Most employer-sponsored green cards in the EB-2 and EB-3 categories need one. The employer tests the US job market and certifies no able, willing, qualified and available US worker exists for the role. The department also checks the job pays the prevailing wage.

PERM sits at the front of the queue. The usual order runs like this:

• Step 1: prevailing wage request and recruitment by the employer
• Step 2: PERM application (Form ETA-9089) filed with the Department of Labor
• Step 3: Form I-140 immigrant petition filed with USCIS
• Step 4: Form I-485 adjustment of status or an immigrant visa abroad, once your priority date is current

Two details raise the stakes. Under 20 CFR 656.30, the PERM filing date becomes your priority date, your place in the green card line. A certified PERM also expires unless your employer files the I-140 within 180 calendar days of certification. A frozen PERM means no priority date and no route to Step 3.

What Officials Said on 8 October

Sonderling said Microsoft and Adobe were suspended "due to multiple active federal investigations," according to CNBC. He also gave figures for the eight firms combined:

• Requests for almost 3 million foreign workers since 2009
• More than 230,000 H-1B approvals
• More than 100,000 permanent labor certifications

Vance focused on Microsoft. He said the company laid off 6,000 US workers last year while receiving 6,300 H-1B visas and almost 3,000 green cards. Vance also said the action might extend to other technology companies.

Microsoft disputed the framing. The company said about 80 percent of the roughly 6,000 H-1B applications filed in the last fiscal year were to extend or change the status of existing Microsoft employees, not to hire new staff. CNBC reported Adobe had not commented at the time of publication.

At the same event, Labor Department Inspector General Anthony D'Esposito announced an investigation into J-1 exchange visitor use at nine universities: Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Brown, the University of Pittsburgh, UC Davis, Caltech, Arizona State and MIT. Manifest Law reported subpoenas had been served.

What the Suspension Does Not Cover

The announcement targets one stage of the green card process at eight named employers. Reports from CNBC, Axios and Immigration Law firms agree on these limits:

• The H-1B program is not suspended, and current H-1B status is not cancelled.
• Green cards already issued are not revoked.
• Employers outside the eight, such as Amazon, Google and Meta, were not named and keep filing PERM cases as normal.
• The PERM program as a whole stays open.

Several questions have no public answer yet. The announcement did not explain whether separately incorporated subsidiaries fall under the freeze. Officials also did not say how the action affects PERM cases already certified, I-140 petitions pending at USCIS, or I-485 applications already filed.

The Legal Rule Behind a PERM Suspension

The Department of Labor has a written rule for this kind of freeze. Under 20 CFR 656.31(b), the department has power to suspend processing of any PERM application involving an employer under investigation for possible fraud or willful misrepresentation. The rule sets these terms:

• The investigating body is the Department of Justice, the Department of Homeland Security or another government entity.
• The department must send written notice of the suspension to the employer, unless the investigating agency asks otherwise in writing.
• A suspension lasts up to 180 days at first.
• After 180 days, the National Certifying Officer either resumes processing some or all applications, or extends the suspension until the investigation or court case ends.

A separate section, 20 CFR 656.31(f), lets the Office of Foreign Labor Certification debar an employer from PERM for up to three years after findings such as willful false information or a pattern of noncompliance. Officials did not say on 8 October which route applies to the eight firms.

If written notice went out on 8 October, the first 180-day mark falls on 6 April 2027. Treat this date as a checkpoint, not a promise of resumed processing.

A Pattern Building Through 2026

This freeze follows earlier actions against PERM sponsors this year, as reported by Manifest Law:

• May 2026: the Labor Department paused Cloudera PERM applications for 180 days in a joint action with the Justice Department.
• August 2026: OpenAI agreed to a $3.2 million settlement with the Justice Department over PERM recruiting, admitting no wrongdoing.
• September 2026: new Cognizant PERM filings were paused as part of a federal fraud investigation.
• 14 September 2026: a Labor Department rule to overhaul PERM recruitment went to the White House for review. The text is not public yet.

Executive Order 14431 also directs agencies to weigh past and planned layoffs at sponsoring employers during H-1B reviews. Expect closer scrutiny of recruitment records and layoff history at every PERM sponsor.

Who Feels This Most

Indian nationals carry the heaviest load. Al Jazeera reported Indians hold roughly 70 percent of existing H-1B visas and make up about 79 percent of the employment-based green card backlog of around 1.25 million people. Five of the eight named firms are Indian outsourcing companies. India's Ministry of External Affairs said the suspension does not "advance the shared ambitions of both countries" and called Vance's description of foreign workers "deeply offensive."

Nasscom, the Indian technology industry body, said relatively few workers at Indian tech companies seek green cards through PERM. Microsoft is the largest PERM filer, according to Labor Department data cited by Reuters, so the freeze reaches furthest there.

What You Should Do Now

Find Your Exact Stage

Ask your employer or immigration attorney where your case stands today. The impact differs sharply by stage:

• Recruitment underway, no PERM filed: no priority date exists yet. A new PERM under the eight firms appears blocked while the freeze lasts.
• PERM pending at the Department of Labor: expect no movement during the suspension.
• PERM certified, I-140 not yet filed: watch the 180-day filing window closely and ask your employer for a written plan.
• I-140 approved: under 8 CFR 204.5(e)(2), you generally keep the priority date for a later petition, unless USCIS revokes the approval for fraud, willful misrepresentation or an invalidated labor certification.
• I-485 pending 180 days or more: INA 204(j) lets you move to a new job in the same or a similar occupation and keep the case alive, using Supplement J.

Protect Your H-1B Time

Your H-1B status stays valid, but the six-year limit still applies. Under AC21 section 106(a), one-year extensions beyond six years need a PERM or I-140 filed at least 365 days earlier. Under section 104(c), three-year extensions need an approved I-140 plus a per-country backlog. A frozen PERM filed less than a year ago puts the 106(a) route at risk, so map your dates now.

Weigh a Move to a New Sponsor

A new employer outside the eight files a fresh PERM, and the department processes the case as normal. The cost is time. You restart recruitment and the PERM filing, though an approved I-140 priority date generally carries over. Compare this route against waiting for the 180-day checkpoint.

Keep Records and Watch Official Channels

• Save copies of your PERM, I-140, I-797 notices and pay records.
• Ask your employer whether the company received written notice under 20 CFR 656.31(b) and what the notice says.
• Check the Department of Labor newsroom and the Office of Foreign Labor Certification FLAG portal for any formal notice.
• Avoid paying anyone who promises a guaranteed new sponsor or a fast-track PERM. Fraud offers spike after news like this.

What Comes Next

Three developments will shape this story over the coming weeks. First, a written order or Federal Register notice would confirm the legal basis and scope. Second, the PERM recruitment rule under White House review since 14 September would change advertising and recruitment steps for every sponsor once published. Third, any court challenge from affected employers would test whether the freeze follows 20 CFR 656.31.

Until official text appears, plan around the stage of your own case. Workers with an approved I-140 hold the strongest position. Workers with nothing filed yet face the longest wait.