India on Friday strongly criticised US Vice President JD Vance’s description of H-1B visa workers as “indentured servants” and opposed Washington’s decision to suspend eight major technology companies from its Permanent Labour Certification (PERM) programme. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the move undermines the shared ambitions of India and the United States and could affect eligible Indian professionals seeking permanent residency.

The MEA clarified that PERM is separate from the H-1B visa programme. The suspension does not automatically affect existing H-1B visas or the status of visa holders and their dependents. However, it could disrupt the Green Card process for eligible employees of the affected companies.

“It should be noted that PERM is distinct from the H-1B visa programme. The suspension of PERM applications does not, by itself, affect the validity of existing H-1B visas or the status of H-1B visa holders and their dependents, though there could be some impact on the permanent-residency/Green Card process of eligible employees of the affected companies,” the ministry said.

India also defended the economic benefits of skilled-worker mobility. It said Indian professionals help American companies strengthen innovation, research, productivity and competitiveness. Their contribution also supports job creation and shareholder wealth in the US.

“The steps announced by the US do not advance the shared ambitions of both countries,” the ministry said, urging all stakeholders to recognise the importance of talent mobility.

The statement also addressed Vance’s remarks at a news conference on visa fraud on Thursday. The US Vice President claimed that H-1B workers received lower salaries than American employees in comparable positions. He accused foreign outsourcing firms of bringing overseas workers into the country while laying off American employees.

“If you are working as an H-1B visa in the United States of America, you’re earning $20,000 less than an American citizen hired in the same position. If you were brought in by one of these foreign outsourcing firms, you’re making $48,000 less than an American citizen in a similar position,” Vance said.

He alleged that companies used foreign workers to undercut American wages and replace domestic employees.

Rejecting his characterisation of H-1B workers, the MEA said the remarks ignored the contributions of Indian professionals to the American economy and innovation ecosystem. It also highlighted the role of generations of immigrants in building US prosperity.

“Resorting to terminology that carries painful historical and colonial legacy connotations is deeply offensive,” the ministry said.

The US Department of Labour suspended Cognizant, Infosys, Tata, Wipro, HCL and Capgemini, along with American technology companies Microsoft and Adobe, from the PERM programme. US Labour Secretary Keith Sonderling attributed the action to multiple active federal investigations.

Sonderling said the companies had collectively sought millions of foreign workers and received hundreds of thousands of H-1B visa approvals and permanent labour certifications.

“Since 2009, just these companies alone have requested almost 3 million foreign workers. They received over 230,000 H-1B Visa approvals and over 100,000 permanent labour certifications; that’s hundreds of thousands of jobs that were taken from American workers,” Sonderling said.

India said it would continue to monitor developments surrounding the issue.