On Thursday, US Vice‑President JD Vance announced that Microsoft and Adobe have been suspended from submitting new permanent labour certification applications for their H‑1B workers, a step that blocks those employees from pursuing green cards through the programme. The move follows accusations that the companies are exploiting the visa system to replace American staff with lower‑paid foreign labour.
Vance Announces Suspension of Microsoft and Adobe
Speaking at a press conference, Vance declared that the administration’s message to Microsoft is clear: “You’re a great American company, but you’ve got to hire great American workers.” He criticised the firm for laying off US employees and then hiring foreign workers on H‑1B visas, describing those hires as “indentured servants”. The vice‑president also claimed that, on average, H‑1B workers earn $20,000 less than their American counterparts in similar roles.
Labour Secretary Keith Sonderling echoed the stance, stating that the Department of Labour will “not accept any new or process any pending permanent labour certification applications involving these companies”. The suspension applies to both Microsoft and Adobe, marking a rare direct intervention in the high‑skilled visa programme.
Microsoft’s Defence and Visa Figures
Microsoft responded by emphasising that the overwhelming majority of its workforce is American and that roughly 80 % of the H‑1B petitions it filed in the past year were for extensions or status changes of existing employees. The company asserted that it pays its H‑1B staff the same as comparable American workers and offers some of the highest compensation in the tech sector.
According to the Department of Labour, Microsoft filed H‑1B petitions for nearly 3,700 workers in 2026, ranking it as the fifth largest employer of H‑1B visa holders that year. Amazon led the list with more than 9,300 petitions. Since 2009, Microsoft and Adobe together have secured about 230,000 H‑1B visa approvals and approximately 100,000 permanent labour certifications – a key step toward employment‑based green cards.
Critics and Industry Reaction
Immigration advocacy groups have long warned that the H‑1B programme ties workers to a single employer, limiting their ability to change jobs or seek higher pay. The National Immigration Forum, in a September 2026 blogpost, argued that attracting global talent benefits the US economy, especially in STEM fields, and warned that restrictive policies could push skilled workers toward competing nations.
While Vance’s rhetoric resonates with certain political bases, industry analysts caution that cutting off access to the green‑card pathway could hinder firms’ ability to retain specialised talent, potentially affecting innovation and competitiveness.
Why it Matters
The suspension signals a hardening stance by the Trump administration on the H‑1B programme, directly challenging two of the tech sector’s biggest players. If the restriction persists, it could disrupt talent pipelines for Microsoft and Adobe, influence wage dynamics in the industry, and prompt other companies to reassess their reliance on foreign skilled workers, with broader repercussions for US innovation and global competitiveness.
