Microsoft President Brad Smith has warned that restrictions on green cards for skilled foreign workers could weaken the United States' ability to attract and retain technology talent, putting the Trump administration's immigration policy at odds with the industry's international recruitment needs.
In an interview, Smith argued that limiting routes to permanent residency could encourage highly qualified engineers and other specialists to pursue opportunities in competing countries.
He also rejected Vice President JD Vance's allegations that Microsoft had abused the H-1B visa programme, describing them as 'completely off base'. The dispute follows the administration's decision to suspend Microsoft and seven other companies from a federal process used to sponsor foreign employees for permanent residency.
The government says its action is intended to protect American workers and address alleged misuse of employment-based immigration rules. Microsoft, meanwhile, maintains that its hiring and pay practices do not disadvantage US workers.
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Smith's remarks followed Vance's announcement on 8 October that Microsoft and seven other companies would be suspended from the Department of Labor's Permanent Labour Certification programme, known as PERM. The process is a labour-certification step commonly required for employer-sponsored employment-based green-card applications.
According to Reuters, the other companies named were Adobe, Cognizant, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro, HCL Technologies and Capgemini. Labour Secretary Keith Sonderling said the department would neither accept new applications nor process pending applications involving the affected businesses.
Vance accused Microsoft of exploiting the system, pointing to US job cuts alongside its use of temporary foreign-worker visas and permanent-residency sponsorships. The administration argues that employers must not use immigration programmes in ways that disadvantage American workers or undermine wage protections.
Microsoft disputes that characterisation. In a statement reported by Reuters, the company said approximately 80% of the roughly 6,000 H-1B applications it filed in the previous fiscal year concerned extensions or changes of status for existing employees rather than new hires.
The remaining applications were for workers already legally in the United States, Microsoft said. These figures do not, by themselves, establish that a foreign employee replaced an American worker who lost a job.
Smith also said Microsoft hired more than 9,000 US-born workers during the previous year, according to Politico. He argued that this contribution had been overlooked in the criticism directed at the company.
The suspension halts the processing of specified PERM applications involving the named companies. It does not, by itself, establish that they have violated immigration rules or prohibit Microsoft from hiring foreign workers through the H-1B programme.
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The distinction between temporary visas and permanent residency is central to the dispute. H-1B visas allow eligible employers to hire foreign professionals for qualifying jobs on a temporary basis, while PERM is a labour-certification process commonly used as part of an employer-sponsored employment-based green-card application.
Smith warned that blocking routes to permanent status could 'cripple' the US technology sector for more than a generation, according to reports. This is his assessment of the potential consequences, rather than an established prediction of what the policy will do.
PERM involves labour-market safeguards. Employers generally must demonstrate that there are not sufficient qualified, available US workers for the relevant position and that employing the foreign worker will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of similarly employed American workers.
Technology companies compete for specialists in areas including artificial intelligence, software engineering and advanced computing. Restricting access to permanent residency could make some international recruits less willing to accept US-based roles, particularly if they are concerned about long-term immigration uncertainty.
Whether that would lead to a measurable loss of talent will depend on how the policy is implemented and how workers and employers respond.
For employees already affected, delays in permanent-residency applications may also complicate long-term career plans. A green card can provide greater independence from an employer than a temporary work visa, although the implications vary depending on an individual's immigration status and circumstances.
The dispute highlights competing policy priorities: enforcing immigration rules, protecting domestic workers and maintaining access to the skills employers need.
The administration has presented its intervention as a way to protect American employment, while Smith argues that restricting permanent-residency pathways risks making the country less attractive to international specialists.
The longer-term effects remain uncertain. Key questions include whether the restrictions lead to measurable improvements in hiring opportunities and wage protection for American workers, and whether they change where highly skilled professionals choose to work.
