Microsoft is suspended from applying for permanent residency for workers employed through a US visa program for high-skilled workers, JD Vance announced on Thursday. The US vice-president accused the tech company of abusing the H-1B system, which allows those on the visa to work while they apply and are in process for a green card. The US labor department also said Adobe had been similarly suspended.
Microsoft applied for an H-1B visa for nearly 3,700 workers in 2026, making it the fifth largest employer of workers on the visa. Tech companies are the biggest employers of H-1B workers across the industry. Amazon topped the list with more than 9,300 petitions this year.
Sonderling said since 2009, Microsoft and Adobe had received about 230,000 approvals for H-1B visas and 100,000 “permanent labor certifications”, a step towards an employment-based green card. The Trump administration has set its sights on the H-1B program for some time, arguing that it is rife with abuse. Vance said that on average, workers hired through the H-1B program were making $20,000 less than US workers in the same position.
Those in the program are often beholden to their employer because their visas are tied to the company that applied for them, making it difficult to switch jobs if things aren’t going well or if they want to find a job with a higher salary. These groups, like the National Immigration Forum, largely disagree with Vance. They argue that competing for specialized talent from around the world benefits the US economy.
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