IBM Ends Most Consulting Sponsorship as Visa Holders Rethink US Plans

IBM is ending visa and green card sponsorship for most roles in its consulting division, a decision workers on H-1B visas read as a signal that employer appetite for sponsorship is narrowing. The company cited evolving skill availability and client needs, and it did not soften the message for the foreign nationals already inside its workforce.

The shift lands on employers at an awkward moment. In October, the Trump administration suspended Microsoft, Adobe and six major IT services companies from the Permanent Labor Certification program — PERM, the key step in the employment-based green card process. The suspension blocks those companies from submitting new applications or advancing pending ones. The administration has also sought a $100,000 fee on new H-1B visas; federal courts have blocked the measure for now.

For HR leaders, the practical question is retention. Business Insider spoke with several tech visa holders who said immigration uncertainty is now shaping their careers, spending and long-term plans — the kind of quiet recalibration that rarely shows up in engagement surveys before it shows up in resignations.

What does this mean for workers on sponsored visas?

Consider the arithmetic of the H-1B (the US specialty-occupation work visa). When Ashok Kumar lost his job in 2019, he had 60 days to find a new employer willing to sponsor him. He succeeded. Now a tech lead at a large corporation, he worries the next search will be harder if more companies follow IBM's lead.

His employer was not among the PERM-suspended companies, but the October news deepened his unease. "Everyone was worried about their future," he said of conversations with friends.

One Microsoft employee is preparing for her final attempt at the H-1B lottery — the annual randomized selection that caps new visas — and she learned about the PERM suspension not from internal communications but from an Instagram reel a friend sent her. She initially ignored it. Then she watched it.

Even a lottery win may not settle matters, since the PERM suspension could add another obstacle between her and a green card. "You can do everything right, build a career at a company like Microsoft, and still not feel secure about your future here," she said. Microsoft has disputed the administration's allegations that it misused the visa system.

How deep does the behavior change go?

Beyond careers, the uncertainty is reaching household decisions. One tech worker on an F-1 STEM OPT visa (the post-study work authorization for science and technology graduates) said he has delayed buying a car because he does not know how long he can stay in the US. He is weighing a move to Canada or the UK.

"My friends are indeed panicking and getting restless," he said.

Reactions vary, which is worth noting before HR teams generalize. Some workers point out that the PERM suspension currently affects only a handful of companies; one Big Tech visa holder said he is unconcerned because he has no long-term US immigration plans. Others have chosen deliberate ignorance as a coping strategy. "It's exhausting to follow everything so I'm staying away from all of it," one tech visa holder said.

Aman Goyal, a product manager on an H-1B visa who arrived in 2023, considered looking abroad after a layoff last year but landed a role in the Seattle area. Visa challenges remain a concern, he said, but they have not outweighed the opportunity. "I'm definitely interested in continuing to be here, meeting and building my network as much as possible, as well as learning about the next phases of AI as much as possible," he said.

The split is the story. Some workers are panicking, some are tuning out and some are doubling down — and each group requires a different conversation from its employer. With sponsorship policy, PERM enforcement and court challenges all in motion, companies that depend on foreign talent will need scenario plans rather than assurances.