Microsoft’s voluntary exit offer arrived amid a Trump‑era probe into its Green Card sponsorships, following the administration’s decision to suspend the company from sponsoring permanent residency for foreign workers.
A social‑media post purporting to be a Microsoft leak showed managers debating whether to lay off H‑1B holders instead of offering exit packages, with employees questioning the company’s reliance on foreign talent.
Microsoft denied the allegations, saying it files H‑1B petitions only for employees who meet rigorous standards. Of the approximately 6,000 H‑1B applications last fiscal year, 80 % extended or changed the status of existing staff, and only 1 % were for new hires already in the United States.
Employees responded with questions about the company’s talent pipeline, pointing to a 31 % jump in net income for FY2026 and asking why Microsoft would reduce its workforce while claiming it needs foreign talent.
The voluntary exit deadline is the end of this year, and the investigation is slated to release a report in early 2027, after which Microsoft will face a decision on its sponsorship policy.