In an official government statement released on Friday, India stated that the remarks made by U.S. Vice President J.D Pence regarding immigrants from India were "highly offensive."

Wans said on Thursday that the Trump administration hopes that foreign and domestic companies "hire American workers," and added that these companies "cannot fire American workers and then replace them with foreign contract laborers."

At the time he made the above remarks, the U.S. Department of Labor announced that it would suspend Microsoft, Adobe, and several other large Indian information technology companies from participating in its permanent labor certification program. This means that these companies will not be able to apply for permanent residency for their employees who hold H-1B visas.

According to official data, around 70% of the beneficiaries of the H-1B visa in 2025 were born in India.

In a statement on Friday, India's Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused Vance of using "terminology with implications related to a painful history and colonial legacy."

The statement claims, "Such descriptions are utterly unnecessary and ignore the fact that Indian professionals in the United States are highly educated and skilled, and they are important contributors to the American economy and innovation ecosystem."

According to CNBC, Vance's office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Wans also criticized Microsoft, accusing the company of replacing 6,000 laid-off employees with holders of H-1B visas.

The Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs assured its citizens that the measures announced by the United States will not affect the validity of existing H-1B visas, nor will they impact the status of H-1B visa holders and their families.

It is stated that "the flow of talent will bring value to the economies of both countries," and it is added that these suspension measures "do not contribute to advancing the common vision of both nations."

More job recruitments in the United States

Indian companies affected by the ban include Cognizant, Infosys, Capgemini, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro, and HCL.

Indian industry organization NASSCOM stated in a declaration that in the past few years, Indian tech companies have "significantly reduced their dependence on H-1B certifications" and are expanding local recruitment within their American workforce.

Tata Consultancy Services, India's largest IT company, stated that in the past two years, the number of its H-1B applications has remained in the “single digits,” and plans to hire an additional 15,000 people in the United States over the next five years.

In June this year, a federal judge blocked the $100,000 H-1B visa fee implemented by U.S. President Donald Trump last year.