Permanent Labor Certificate Program: October 8 brought a major earthquake for the American tech world and the foreign workers who work there. Washington’s decision has created a stir from Silicon Valley to India. The Trump administration has issued an order suspending the immigration system critical to several large tech companies. The Trump administration alleges that these companies have abused the worker visa system on a large scale. This action involves not only the American giant Microsoft but also big Indian companies like Wipro, Infosys and Tata. There is an atmosphere of great confusion among the millions of Indian professionals working in the offices of these companies.

What is the Permanent Labor Certification Program?

To understand this whole matter first it is necessary to know what is ‘Permanent Labor Certification Program’ (PERM). Simply put, this is an official process of the US government, under which any American company sponsors its foreign employee to get a green card i.e. permanent residence.

According to the rules, when a company wants to hire a foreign worker permanently in the US, it must first obtain this certification from the Department of Labor. The company has to prove that there is no qualified domestic citizen available in the US for that particular post. Now the Trump administration has put this entire system on hold for many large companies. This simply means that the affected companies will not be able to start the process of filing new applications for green cards for their foreign employees as long as this ban continues.

Several tech giants, including Microsoft, are on target

The attitude of the American government was seen to be very strict while announcing this drastic measure. Vice President JD Vance took a direct hit at Microsoft during an important press briefing in Washington. He clearly stated that hardly any company in the entire history of America has abused the Visa system as much as Microsoft. Vance also clarified that his intention is not to harm the company, rather he wants the company to empower American citizens by employing them.

At the same time, US Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling clarified that the action was not limited to Microsoft. The government has also suspended the program for tech companies like Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp, Infosys Ltd, Tata, Wipro Ltd, HCL Technologies and Capgemini. Keith Sonderling vehemently said that the government had now got to the real root of the problem and crushed the snake’s noose. The US Labor Department is also conducting intensive investigations against all these companies.

A direct attack on Indian professionals

Indian professionals are bearing the brunt of this entire decision. Indian engineers account for the largest share of top US IT companies and service providers. Indians are already struggling with decades-long waits in green card queues.

Data from the US State Department’s Visa Bulletin for September 2026 alone bears witness to this dire crisis. According to the bulletin, the Employment-Based Second Preference (EB-2) category for India was declared completely unavailable for final processing. While the cut-off date for the EB-3 category stood at January 1, 2014. In addition, American law also imposes a fixed limit (country cap) on the number of green cards issued to citizens of each country. In such difficult circumstances, Indian professionals’ dream of getting a green card may take longer due to stalled labor certification process.

Big crisis against employees stuck in 6 years limit

The second and scariest aspect of this decision relates to H-1B visa holders. Under American rules, any employee can stay in the US for a maximum of six years on an H-1B visa. A stay of more than six years is available only to employees whose labor certification process (PERM) has started on time.

Now the situation has become extremely critical for employees who are in the last phase of their six-year visa. Companies will not be able to file a new PERM for them, which could prevent them from obtaining visa extensions and force them to leave the US. However, there is little relief for those employees whose applications have already been approved and who are just waiting for a green card number. Under the current rules, they will be entitled to an extension of three years each. But this decision of the Trump administration is no less than a big shock for the new applicants.