Microsoft baked estimated costs for its 60,000 worker voluntary buyout program into next quarter’s cost of goods sold and operating expense guidance after reporting fiscal first quarter revenue rose 19% to $92.3B. Overall headcount fell 2% from a year earlier, and CFO Amy Hood did not disclose the expected cost of the buyouts, projected departures, or whether further involuntary cuts are planned, though the company previously confirmed layoffs remain on the table.

Separately, Cloud + AI chief Scott Guthrie told employees in a leaked internal Q&A that Microsoft will “continue to sponsor” visa and green card holders and wants to “bring more talent into the United States.” Guthrie’s remarks came two days after Microsoft unveiled the buyouts and a week after the US government suspended the company’s PERM permanent residency filings. He said Microsoft is “working with the US administration to get clarity” on the suspension and added that “we’re not sure that everyone’s looked at the right data.”

The voluntary exit offer covers about 27% of Microsoft’s 223,000 global staff across the US, Canada, the UK, and India up to internal Level 70, including vice presidents, partner level technical leaders, and general managers in divisions such as Copilot, Windows, and Xbox, while excluding certain data center, sales, marketing, and security roles. Eligible workers have until early December to accept standard severance packages of up to 39 weeks of base pay, two stock vestings, and six months of COBRA healthcare coverage ahead of a Dec 31 departure.