The Trump administration has suspended Microsoft, Adobe and several other technology companies from a programme that helps skilled foreign workers obtain permanent residency in the United States, accusing the firms of fraud.

“Our message to Microsoft is: You’re a great American company, but you’ve got to hire great American workers,” U.S. ⁠Vice President JD Vance said in a news conference on Thursday, Reuters reported.

The other companies suspended from the programme include Capgemini, Cognizant, HCL, Infosys, Tata and Wipro.

US Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling said the government would reject any new or pending permanent labour certification applications involving the companies.

H-1B visas are intended for highly skilled jobs that employers may find difficult to fill with qualified US workers.

Technology companies are among the biggest users of the programme, with workers from India accounting for nearly three-quarters of approved visas, according to The Associated Press.

The company said it only files H-1B petitions for workers who meet the visa category’s “rigorous standards” and pays its H-1B employees the same as other eqaqmployees performing comparable roles.

Vance also said at the news conference that the administration would investigate nine universities, including Harvard, Yale and Stanford, over allegations that they were abusing a programme that allows international students to study in the US and using it to undermine wages for American workers.

Adobe did not immediately respond to a request for comment.