A CNBC review of federal visa data gives a mixed picture of Vice President JD Vance's claim that Microsoft replaced laid-off Americans with foreign hires. The Trump administration on Thursday suspended eight companies, including Microsoft and Adobe, from a Labor Department program used to sponsor foreign workers for green cards.

Vice President JD Vance singled out Microsoft. "There has been no company in the United States, unfortunately, that has abused the system more than Microsoft," he said, Fox Business reported. He said the company laid off 6,000 American workers last year while getting 6,300 H-1B visas and nearly 3,000 green cards. "For every worker that Microsoft laid off, they replaced that worker with 1½ foreign indentured servants," he said.

The suspension covers the PERM program for permanent residency. It does not affect H-1B visas, which are temporary work permits.

CNBC checked the government's H-1B data. Microsoft did get more than 6,000 H-1B approvals in fiscal 2025, as Vance said: 6,258. But two in three went to people who already worked there. Amazon, with 19,178 approvals, and Meta, with 6,294, were the top two sponsors. Neither was suspended. Amazon brought in nearly four times as many H-1B workers who were new to the company.

All eight suspended companies rank among the top 50 H-1B sponsors. Most are IT services and consulting firms.

The crackdown went beyond tech. The Labor Department's inspector general announced an investigation into alleged J-1 visa fraud involving nine major universities, CNBC reported.

Hours after Vance's remarks, President Donald Trump gave Microsoft's CEO a medal at a White House event, 24/7 Wall St. reported. Supporters of the crackdown say visa programs let employers undercut American wages.

What we know: Microsoft and Adobe are among eight firms suspended from the green-card program.
What we don't: how long the suspension will last.