Trump's green card curbs test Indian tech workers' American dream

ByRachita Prasad BBC News, Mumbai.

Key points

• Nasscom, the trade association of India's $300bn (£226bn) technology industry, notes that Indian businesses have reduced the dependence on H-1B visas and are hiring more locally.
• The report remarked no records were identified for Infosys and Wipro for 2025-26.
• Earlier, the Trump administration imposed a $100, 000 fee on certain new H-1B visa petitions, a measure that was afterwards struck down by federal courts.
• Ahmet Gulek, Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford's Immigration Policy Lab, informed BBC that despite alternate ways to secure residency, not plenty of may be feasible.
• Applicants can additionally qualify for permanent residency by investing at least $800, 000 in eligible US enterprises.

For millions of Indians, the road to the ultimate career aspiration had a familiar script – an engineering degree to obtain a tech services job, then a posting in the US, repeated visa renewals and then the green card that provided them permanent residency in the country. But that may end shortly.

Earlier this month, the US confirmed it would suspend eight technology firms, including Microsoft, India's Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro and HCL Technologies, from hiring skilled international workers on a permanent basis through a widely employed visa pathway.

New and pending applications under the Permanent Labor Certification Program, or PERM, have been frozen. This is a major blow to Indians who hold a majority of H-1B visas – a temporary visa for specialists – which they employed to work in the US while relying on PERM to obtain a green card and, ultimately, citizenship.

In practice, the latest announcement is in line with Trump's push for stricter skilled-worker immigration rules. It tech firms have been adapting to and, therefore, the impact on businesses may be minimal, experts say.

"Consequently, the number of employees transitioning from H-1B visas to permanent residency through the PERM process is also relatively limited, " the association adds.

Wipro remarked in an official note that more than 80% of its workforce in the US is locally hired. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), remarked its PERM applications were in single digits in the last two years. Microsoft remarked in an official note that it has filed for H-1B visas mostly to retain existing staff, not to import new workers.

For context, a report in Business Standard newspaper, citing PERM Tracker, remarked, TCS' applications filings fell to two in 2025-26 from 513 in the previous year and 1, 804 in the year before that. The report remarked no records were identified for Infosys and Wipro for 2025-26.

BBC's email to all eight firms asking questions concerning the impact of the restriction and how they were supporting affected employees in the US remained unanswered.

As PERM-linked jobs produce up only a small share of revenue, even if higher-paid American workers replace them, brokerage firm HDFC Securities remarked the impact on tech firms would be minimal. But the US government's decision has an impact beyond business.

Meanwhile, a US-based senior executive with one of these eight firms informed the BBC on condition of anonymity that the new PERM restriction will "not break the business", but the impact is more "intense" at a human level.

"A good number of individuals we know are stuck in a space where they have spent some years in the US but their green card application hasn't moved. Even if they are ready to move back to India, their children don't want to since they grew up here, " he stated.

Recent policy moves have deepened uncertainty and amplified online hostility towards Indian immigrants and H-1B visa holders.

Researchers at Stop AAPI Hate, a US non-profit that combats anti-Asian and Pacific Islander discrimination, have documented a sharp rise in anti-South Asian online sentiment since the 2024 US election, with Indian immigrants and H-1B visa holders being frequent targets.

While barring the eight tech firms from PERM, US Vice President JD Vance too referred to foreign professionals holding H-1B visas as "foreign indentured servants".

While he afterwards acknowledged that it was an "imperfect" rhetoric, his remark drew sharp criticism from India's foreign ministry which called it "unwarranted" and "deeply offensive" for the colonial connotation.

Poorvi Chothani, founder and managing partner of global immigration law firm LawQuest, remarked numerous came to the US for better prospects, borrowing heavily to study and build careers. But as rules tighten now, they have fewer options and less ability to absorb the costs.

While others may choose not to move at all, immigration experts believe that as pathways for residency become limited, some may reconsider their future in the US.

While moving to another firm not covered by the suspension is an option, he flags that it's unclear if those firms would be open to hiring immigrants given "the fear of retaliation". Besides, it's additionally a tough time to change jobs.

Meanwhile, the technology industry has already been reshaped by layoffs, cost-cutting and the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence (AI), making career moves tougher.

But there are other routes to a US green card. Individuals with exceptional accomplishments or whose work advances national interests may be eligible for categories that bypass the PERM labour certification process.

Applicants can additionally qualify for permanent residency by investing at least $800, 000 in eligible US enterprises. Gulek warns some of these categories "may be targeted next."

While Chothani notes some are so keen to stay in the US that they are considering the EB-5 investor route but may not have enough capital to invest.

Almost one million Indian nationals were waiting for employment-based green cards as of December 2025, representing 79% of the total pending applications, according to the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP).

Their report projects wait times ranging from five to 179 years for highly skilled Indians filing labour certification or employment-based immigration petitions from January 2026, depending on the visa category.

Like other recent immigration measures, the PERM suspension may face federal court challenges. But together, these moves signal a more restrictive climate for those hoping to study, work or settle in the US.

Earlier, the Trump administration imposed a $100, 000 fee on certain new H-1B visa petitions, a measure that was afterwards struck down by federal courts. More lately, it has additionally proposed a $70, 000 fee for universities recommending international students for a programme that allows graduates to work in the country after completing their studies.

"This trend is not changing anytime soon, " remarked an Indian professional. This person spoke to BBC on condition of anonymity and has transitioned to an H-1B visa lately after a "long wait". He notes both the Republican Party and the Democratic Party agree immigration laws need reform, even if they disagree on how.

Some research suggests that restrictions could shift jobs to India rather than to American workers. This is backed by industry players saying that they are already witnessing an rise in firms offshoring work.

"Firms benefit from cost arbitrage when they move work offshore. Post Covid, there is additionally greater acceptance and appreciation for remote work from clients, " the executive from the tech firm earlier quoted states.

Experts believe America's appetite for Indian tech talent is unlikely to disappear. What may be changing is how it taps that talent. For Indian professionals, that could mean rewriting the script regarding building a future in the US.

For now, trump' s green card curbs test Indian tech workers' American dream remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.