Updated Oct. 8, 2026, 8:46 p.m. ET
Federal officials announced that tech giant Microsoft and seven other companies are being suspended from a program that allows businesses to seek permanent residency in the United States for foreign workers, accusing them of abusing the system while also targeting universities’ visa practices.
“The Department of Labor is taking historic action by shutting down the pipeline of systemic fraud,” Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling said in announcing the actions on Oct. 8 during an event with Vice President JD Vance.
The moves reignite President Donald Trump‘s feud with elite universities, which have been under scrutiny since he returned to the White House, and open a new front ahead of the midterm elections in his campaign targeting immigrants.
Vance criticized Microsoft’s use of H-1B visas to bring foreign workers into the United States and then apply for permanent residency. The H-1B program has come under scrutiny, including from prominent figures in Trump’s MAGA movement, by those who argue it takes jobs from American workers.
“Our message to Microsoft is: You’re a great American company, but you’ve to hire great American workers,” Vance said. “You cannot lay off American workers and then replace them with foreign indentured servants.”
Microsoft said in a statement that the “vast majority” of its U.S. employees are Americans. Out of roughly 6,000 H-1B visa applications in the past fiscal year, the company said 80% were to “extend or change the status” of existing workers, not for new arrivals.
“We believe in the strength and talent of the American workforce,” the company said.
The Department of Labor is suspending Microsoft, Adobe, and six information technology outsourcing firms from the Permanent Labor Certification program, Sonderling said. The companies have applied to bring in nearly 3 million foreign workers since 2009, and have received over 230,000 H-1B visas and more than 100,000 certifications for permanent residency, he said. Any new or pending applications from the companies for permanent residency, also known as a green card, won’t be processed.
“We are cutting off the head of the snake, the companies that have enabled this abuse for decades,” Sonderling said.
Universities under investigation over J-1 visas
During the same event, Labor Department Inspector General Anthony D’Esposito announced an investigation into “visa fraud involving nine major American universities,” naming the University of Pittsburgh, Yale University, Harvard University, Stanford University, Brown University, University of California, Davis, California Institute of Technology, Arizona State University, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
“Subpoenas have been served, investigations are underway and nobody will be getting a free pass because their name is carved into an expensive building,” D’Esposito said of the investigation into how the universities are using J-1 visas, which can be obtained for a variety of purposes, including teaching, studying, and conducting research in the United States.
Vance said the nine universities are using the J-1 visas too frequently, and to “undercut the wages of American grad students and American researchers.”
Officials at MIT and the University of Pittsburgh said the schools have received the subpoenas and are reviewing them.
An MIT spokesperson emphasized that each of its J-1 visa holders was “vetted and authorized” by the government and said the university values “international students and scholars on our campus.” University of Pittsburgh Head of External Communications and Media Relations Jared Stonesifer said the school’s participation in federal visa programs is “in accordance with all applicable federal requirements.”
A statement from Yale said the school “is committed to full compliance with federal rules concerning visas, including the requirements for J-1 visas.”
An ASU spokesperson said the university “educates more STEM majors than any other university and employs one of the largest technical and scientific workforces in the country.”
“This benefits both the Arizona and the United States economies, and in doing so, ASU has hired the talent needed to perform these functions – and done so in complete compliance with existing United States policy and law,” the spokesperson said.
Trump launched a sweeping immigration crackdown after taking office last year. The effort is centered around the mass deportation of immigrants without legal status, but the administration also has sought to overhaul the H-1B program.
The administration imposed a $100,000 temporary fee on new H-1B visas, which are popular in the tech industry, but it was later blocked by a federal judge. The visas allow companies to bring highly skilled foreign workers with training in specialty fields to the United States.
The Department of Homeland Security has proposed a new rule that would impose a permanent charge of $103,265 for each H-1B visa.
The investigation into university visas targets some of the same institutions that have been in Trump’s crosshairs before. The administration has pushed universities to sign a compact adopting Trump’s higher education policies, investigated them for alleged discrimination, and sought to withhold federal funding.
This story has been updated with new information.
Contributing: Reuters
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