US suspends Indian IT firms from PERM programme amid visa concerns

The US government’s decision to suspend major Indian IT firms from the PERM programme — which provides a pathway to permanent residency — is part of the administration’s larger agenda to crack down on foreign labour and curtail immigration. It follows the administration’s move last year to introduce a $100,000 fee for H-1B visas, deepening the uncertainty for companies that rely more on skilled foreign workers. While the immediate impact of the recent decision could be muted — Indian IT firms accounted for less than 2 per cent of the 1,17,849 PERM applications filed between October 2024 and September 2025, according to a report by ICICI Securities — the action is likely to sour sentiment. Moreover, as the report says, “any extension into broader work-visa restrictions would pose a more material risk”. India’s software, business and other services exports — a major source of foreign exchange for the country — stood at $221 billion in 2025-26. Washington’s latest action thus opens another front in a tumultuous India-US relationship.

The White House’s fresh salvo comes only weeks after the passing of a new law that paves the way for the US to impose tariffs of up to 100 per cent on countries like China and India that are top energy buyers from Russia. The pattern in the US administration’s moves is hard to miss. Trump has, for some time now, been prodding India to reduce its purchases of Russian oil — between December 2022 and August 2026, China accounted for roughly half of Russia’s crude exports, followed by India at 37 per cent, as per the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air — even as he announced a deal with Russia only a few days ago to supply diesel to US and global markets.

In the midst of these developments, statements from both sides appear to be less sanguine about the conclusion of the much delayed India-US trade deal. A few days ago, the US Trade Representative, Jamieson Greer, said that a trade agreement was not “imminent”, followed by India’s Finance Minister saying that “both the sides have reached a plateau beyond which giving or taking might be very very difficult”. With the outcome of trade negotiations with Washington uncertain, the pressure on multiple fronts — energy, services exports, and labour mobility — is mounting.