Vance Accuses Microsoft of Replacing Laid Off Workers With Visa Holders

The Trump administration has suspended eight technology companies from sponsoring foreign workers for employment-based green cards, while Vice President JD Vance accused Microsoft of replacing American employees with H-1B visa holders after laying off 6,000 workers in 2025. Federal immigration data shows Microsoft received 6,258 H-1B approvals in fiscal 2025, although most beneficiaries were already employed by the company.

The suspensions target the Department of Labor's Program Electronic Review Management system, known as PERM, which employers use to sponsor foreign workers for permanent residency. The restrictions do not apply to H-1B visas, which allow temporary employment in the United States.

According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Employer Data Hub, Microsoft ranked third among H-1B sponsors in fiscal 2025. Amazon led with 19,178 approvals, followed by Meta with 6,294. Neither company was included in the suspension announced by the administration.

Vance challenged Microsoft's hiring practices during a White House news conference Thursday, arguing that the company's visa approvals exceeded the number of American workers it had laid off.

"If you do the math, for every worker that Microsoft laid off, they replaced that worker with one and a half foreign indentured servants. ... Microsoft is a great American company, and we have a great relationship with them," said JD Vance, Vice President of the United States.

The available figures show that approximately two-thirds of Microsoft's H-1B approvals went to individuals already working for the company, according to the USCIS data. The distinction matters because approval totals include workers continuing their employment as well as people entering a company, rather than representing only newly hired foreign employees.

Amazon, which received more than three times Microsoft's total number of H-1B approvals in fiscal 2025, also brought in nearly four times as many H-1B workers who were new to the company, according to the reported data. Despite its larger numbers, Amazon was not among the suspended employers.

Microsoft had been the largest H-1B sponsor for years before Amazon overtook it in 2017, according to the report. The latest figures place Microsoft close behind Amazon and Meta in total approvals.

All eight suspended companies ranked among the top 50 H-1B sponsors nationwide. Most operate in information technology services and consulting, while Adobe ranked 45th, making it the smallest sponsor on the list.

The administration's action also extended beyond technology companies. During the same Thursday news conference, Labor Department Inspector General Anthony D'Esposito announced an investigation into alleged J-1 visa fraud involving nine major American universities.

The J-1 program allows eligible foreign nationals to participate in designated exchange visitor programs. The investigation adds to the administration's scrutiny of visa arrangements amid longstanding arguments from Trump supporters that some employers use foreign worker programs in ways that disadvantage American employees.