New Delhi: Industry body Nasscom on Thursday said that immigration and skilled talent mobility are 'two distinct issues' that should not be viewed through the same lens, after the US suspended eight tech firms, including Tata, Infosys, HCL and Wipro, from a key green card programme.
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The latest action comes amid mounting challenges for Indian IT companies in the US, including tighter scrutiny of work visas and higher costs for H-1B applicants.
The latest development in the US – the biggest market for the $300 billion Indian IT industry – adds to uncertainty for tech outsourcers that rely on cross-border movement of skilled professionals.
In a statement, Nasscom said the decision affects a specific immigration pathway, but it has consistently maintained that the two issues should be kept apart.
"The US Department of Labour has today announced the temporary suspension of certain IT companies, including Indian technology companies operating in the US, from filing new applications under the Permanent Labour Certification (PERM) programme.
.@RNamb @shivendra_1969 @nasscomgtd https://t.co/vmIKWC130w
— nasscom (@nasscom) October 8, 2026
“While the decision affects a specific immigration pathway, Nasscom has consistently maintained that immigration and skilled talent mobility are two distinct issues that should not be viewed through the same lens," Nasscom said.
The industry body emphasised that the H-1B visa programme has historically played an important role in addressing short-term skill gaps in the US and will continue to be used to address short-term talent gaps.
“However, over the past few years, Indian technology companies have significantly reduced their dependence on H-1B visas, while steadily expanding local hiring and building a strong domestic workforce in the US," the Nasscom statement said.
It said these companies work with the majority of US Fortune 500 companies, enabling them to innovate and grow, and generating more local jobs.
"Consequently, the number of employees transitioning from H-1B visas to permanent residency through the PERM process is also relatively limited," it said.
Indian technology companies operate across more than 80 countries and have consistently demonstrated their commitment to complying with local laws and regulatory requirements, Nasscom said, expressing confidence that the firms will continue to adhere to applicable regulations in the US as well.
Emails sent to Infosys, HCL, Tata, Wipro and others affected by the latest move did not elicit a response.
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The US on Thursday suspended eight IT firms, including Microsoft, Tata, Infosys and Wipro, from a programme to apply for green cards for foreign workers, contending that the practice has shut out Americans from the job market.
The announcement was made by US Vice President J D Vance, Labour Secretary Keith Sonderling, and Attorney General Todd Blanche as part of the action under the aegis of the US Anti-Fraud Task Force.
"I am hereby suspending from the Permanent Labour Certification Programme some of the largest IT outsourcing firms in the world, Cognizant, Infosys, Tata, Wipro, HCL, and Capgemini," Sonderling said, adding that the Department of Labour is also suspending Microsoft and Adobe from the programme due to multiple active federal investigations.
Sonderling said the Department of Labour will not accept any new or process any pending permanent labour certification applications involving these companies.
Since 2009, these companies alone have requested almost three million foreign workers. They've received over 230,000 H-1B visa approvals and more than 100,000 permanent labour certifications, Sonderling said.
That's hundreds of thousands of jobs that were taken from American workers, he said.
Indian professionals account for more than 70 per cent of all approved H-1B petitions annually.
Vance referred to foreign workers hired on H1-B visas as 'foreign indentured servants' and the companies using the programme as 'visa mills'.
He also announced an investigation into the J-1 visa programme for research scholars utilised by nine major universities, including Yale, Harvard, Stanford and Caltech.
