The Trump administration’s decision to halt employment-based Green Card processing via the Permanent Labor Certification Program (PERM) for eight major technology and IT services firms has generated apprehension among Indian professionals employed in the US. However, immigration specialist Swatilina Barik has advised against conflating this action with a suspension of H-1B visa programs.
PERM pause could delay Green Cards for Indian workers at 8 Tech firms
In a LinkedIn post, Barik clarified that the action does not invalidate current H-1B visas or impact Green Cards that have received approval. Rather, it restricts the affected companies from submitting new PERM applications and temporarily halts any applications currently under review during the suspension period.
The companies subject to this measure include Microsoft, Adobe, Cognizant, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Wipro, HCLTech, and Capgemini.
What is PERM?
PERM represents a critical component within the employer-sponsored Green Card pathway. Typically, it mandates that employers establish the absence of sufficient qualified and accessible US workers capable of filling the role, while simultaneously confirming that employing an international worker will not negatively impact the compensation and employment conditions of comparably positioned US employees.
Impact on Indian professionals
For Indian professionals dependent on employer sponsorship, any suspension could impede their trajectory toward securing permanent residency status. However, the actual impact will fluctuate based on their present immigration classification and their position within the Green Card application timeline.
Barik described the development as a constraint on the employment-based permanent residency pathway, distinguishing it from an elimination of temporary work authorization. “The real consequence is delay for those whose permanent residency runs through these employers. For the many talented Indian professionals on that path, a pause at the PERM stage is a genuine setback in timing, even though their current status is intact,” he wrote.
This distinction holds significance for H-1B visa holders, who are permitted to remain employed in the US provided they sustain their valid status and satisfy all relevant requirements. However, people depending on the implicated employers to initiate or progress their PERM-based Green Card applications may encounter uncertainty regarding their future prospects.
The administration has rationalized the enforcement action as a component of its initiative to examine purported misappropriation of employment-based immigration initiatives and safeguard American workers. The particular allegations and their respective consequences may differ across organizations, and a suspension alone does not inherently demonstrate culpability.
For Indian technology professionals, the primary concern centers on the possible interruption of employer-sponsored Green Card petitions. This action may also encourage impacted workers and their employers to reevaluate their immigration approaches as the administration intensifies oversight of work-based visa initiatives.
Barik’s post also highlighted alternative immigration pathways, such as the EB-1A category designed for people demonstrating extraordinary ability and the EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW). “Depending entirely on an employer for your future is a quiet risk, and moments like this reveal it. The routes that rest on your own record, the extraordinary ability Green Card and the National Interest Waiver, need no employer and no PERM at all.”
These options enable qualified applicants to pursue permanent residency independent of employer-sponsored PERM labor certification, though both pathways maintain distinct eligibility criteria and offer no assurance of approval.
The moratorium introduces additional complexity for experienced international professionals who have invested considerable time developing their careers in the US while pursuing permanent residency status. For people subject to this measure, determining which phase of the immigration process has been halted will prove critical in evaluating the likely consequences for their specific circumstances.