What Happened to Cognizant's PERM Program

Cognizant is facing a PERM suspension while authorities in the United States investigate H-1B and green card fraud. The two threads — the suspension of the labor certification step and the fraud investigation — are connected in the reporting, and both sit inside the same US employment-based immigration framework that many students and early-career professionals eventually encounter.

For readers who are not immigration lawyers, the important thing to hold onto is scope: this is a development involving one company's PERM activity, set against a broader US investigation into H-1B and green card fraud. It is not a statement about every employer, every visa category, or every applicant.

Why PERM and the H-1B and Green Card Connection Matter

PERM is part of the US labor certification process that employers use when sponsoring certain foreign workers for permanent residence. An H-1B is a temporary work visa category. A green card is the permanent residence route. These are different steps in a longer sequence, and the reporting links Cognizant's PERM suspension to a fraud investigation touching H-1B and green card matters.

That link is why the story travels beyond one company's HR department. Employers that sponsor workers build a pipeline: a temporary status first, then a permanent one. When a stage in that pipeline is suspended amid a fraud investigation, the story naturally raises questions about how such pipelines are scrutinised.

What This Means for Students and Newcomers Watching the US

Many people who study in the United States later look at work options, and work options often lead to questions about sponsorship. This development is a reminder that employer-sponsored pathways carry compliance requirements, and that investigations can interrupt a company's internal processes.

It does not mean the categories are closed, and it does not mean any individual applicant is affected. The reporting describes Cognizant's situation specifically. Readers weighing US study and work plans should treat this as one data point about how enforcement can interact with employer sponsorship, not as a blanket prediction. For anyone comparing options across countries or mapping out a longer application plan, keeping employer-specific news separate from category-wide rules is the useful habit.

If your interest is in the study side rather than the employment side, an independent US study information guide can help you understand application and test preparation steps without conflating them with an employer investigation.

FAQ

What does a PERM suspension mean?

A PERM suspension means the labor certification step associated with an employer's sponsorship activity is paused. In this case, the pause is reported alongside a US investigation into H-1B and green card fraud involving Cognizant.

Is this about all H-1B or green card applicants?

No. The development concerns Cognizant and a US fraud investigation. It does not describe a change applying to all applicants or all employers.

Should students change their US plans because of this?

There is no basis in the reporting for a blanket change of plans. The situation is employer-specific and tied to an ongoing investigation, so it is best read as a compliance and enforcement development rather than a general rule change.