Washington, August 8, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
A Republican US senator has called for tighter recruitment requirements for employers sponsoring foreign workers for permanent residency, a move that could have implications for Indian technology professionals seeking employment-based green cards.
Senator Eric Schmitt of Missouri has urged Acting Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling to overhaul the Program Electronic Review Management (PERM) process, which is generally the first step employers take when sponsoring foreign employees for permanent residency.
Indians accounted for 70 per cent of all approved H-1B petitions in fiscal 2025, according to the latest US Citizenship and Immigration Services data. Many Indian professionals move from student visas and Optional Practical Training (OPT) to H-1B employment before pursuing employer-sponsored permanent residency.
In a letter to the Labor Department, Schmitt alleged that the PERM and H-1B programmes can be misused by companies to replace American workers with lower-cost foreign labour. His letter does not specifically mention India and does not itself alter existing immigration rules.
Instead, Schmitt has asked the Department of Labor to revise PERM regulations and release information on audits, suspected fraud and PERM applicants’ previous use of OPT and H-1B visas.
Under the current system, employers seeking permanent labour certification must demonstrate that qualified and available US workers cannot be found and that hiring a foreign worker will not adversely affect similarly employed American workers.
Schmitt argued that PERM recruitment requirements have not undergone a substantial update in more than two decades. He said existing rules, which generally require advertisements in two print newspapers for non-professional positions and notification to a state workforce agency, do not adequately reflect the modern job market.
The senator wants employers to advertise every PERM position on their regular careers website and at least one widely used online employment platform. They would also be required to follow the same application process used for comparable non-PERM positions.
His proposal would further require companies to document every American applicant, provide reasons for rejecting candidates and certify that positions were not reserved, formally or informally, for foreign workers.
Employers would also have to notify recently laid-off US workers who meet the job requirements, interview qualified applicants and provide written explanations for rejections.
For Indian professionals, such changes could mean greater documentation and scrutiny during the green-card sponsorship process and potentially longer processing timelines. However, their actual impact would depend on whether the Labor Department adopts the proposals and how any resulting regulations are framed.
PERM is distinct from the H-1B programme. While H-1B permits temporary employment in specialised occupations, PERM is commonly used as part of the process leading to employment-based permanent residency. Schmitt’s proposal does not call for the immediate cancellation of existing visas, applications or immigration status.
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