US Labour Department Investigates H-1B Visa Fraud, Names Indian IT Firm Cognizant

The United States Department of Labour has launched a major investigation into alleged fraud involving the H-1B and PERM work visa programmes. A senior federal official has named Indian IT giant Cognizant among the companies being scrutinised.

The investigation is being led by the Department of Labour’s Office of Inspector General (OIG), which said it has uncovered alleged schemes involving fraudulent visa applications, exploitation of foreign workers, and practices that may have undercut American workers. The probe is part of the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, led by US Vice President JD Vance.

Speaking to Fox Business on Wednesday, Labour Department Inspector General Anthony D’Esposito said investigators had already begun issuing subpoenas and were pursuing multiple leads. “We’ve already started to issue dozens of subpoenas; we are going to make sure that we track down every lead. We have whistleblowers talking about some of the biggest companies like Cognizant, who have been sort of… in the chatter of issues with PERM and H-1B visas,” D’Esposito said.

D’Esposito did not accuse Cognizant of wrongdoing or provide details of any specific allegations. As of Wednesday, the company had not publicly responded to the remarks.

According to the OIG, investigators are examining allegations that some employers and labour brokers submitted fraudulent H-1B and PERM visa applications, exploited foreign workers through coercive wage kickback arrangements, undercut American workers by hiring foreign labour at below-market wages, and used the visa system to profit rather than address genuine labour shortages.

“These abuses undermine the integrity of Department of Labour programmes designed to address genuine labour shortages—not to line the pockets of bad actors at the expense of American jobs,” the agency said in a statement.

The watchdog said the investigation also targets suspected human trafficking and forced-labour networks linked to guest worker visa programmes. “The OIG is determined to root out every scheme that preys on vulnerable workers and takes jobs from American workers,” the statement added.

The H-1B visa programme is widely used by US technology companies to hire highly skilled foreign professionals, with Indian nationals accounting for the overwhelming majority of H-1B approvals each year. PERM certification is a key step for many employment-based green card applications. Any expanded federal scrutiny of H-1B and PERM filings could have implications for major technology companies, outsourcing firms, and thousands of foreign workers, particularly Indians employed in the US tech sector.