PERM Labor Certification Process

A permanent labor certification issued by the Department of Labor (DOL) allows an employer to hire a foreign worker to work permanently in the United States. In most instances, before the U.S. employer can submit an immigration petition to the Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the employer must obtain an approved labor certification request from the DOL's Employment and Training Administration (ETA). The DOL must certify to the USCIS that there are no minimally qualified U.S. workers able, willing, and available to accept the job at the prevailing wage for that occupation, in the area of intended employment, and that employment of the alien will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of similarly employed U.S. workers.

PERM FAQs

Prevailing Wage Request

The first step of the PERM process is establishing the Prevailing Wage from the DOL. The employer must submit a Prevailing Wage Request to the DOL, listing the job opportunity with job duties, work location(s), and job requirements such as education, experience, and skills. The DOL will process the application and provide the occupational classification, and wage level for the position. This is the minimum wage that the employer can pay the employee for the position once the green card is issued.

Recruitment Period

When the Prevailing Wage is established, the employer must then advertise the position in the open labor market in what is known as the “labor market test.” The DOL has very strict requirements on how the position can be advertised, where it can be advertised, and for how long it must be advertised. All positions must be advertised in a Sunday Newspaper of general circulation in the area for two consecutive Sundays. All positions must all be advertised internally using a Notice of Filing posted at the work location. All positions must also be advertised on a State Workforce Agency (SWA)For professional positions, in the state where work will be performed. For professional positions, the employer must use at least three more manners of recruitment from the ten options provided by the DOL.

If no minimally qualified U.S. workers (Legal Permanent Residents or U.S. citizens) are found for the position during the recruitment period, and there have been no layoffs for the position in the last six months, the employer may then file the Labor Certification. Please note that detailed records of the recruitment process, applicants, and reasons for rejections must be kept in a Recruitment Report, in case of an audit from the DOL.

Labor Certification (ETA 9089)

The employer files an ETA 9089 form online with the DOL describing the job duties, job requirements, recruitment process completed, and foreign national information and credentials. Upon certification of the Labor Certification Application, an I-140 petition may be filed with USCIS within 180 days.

Why hire an attorney for the PERM process?

  • Attorney will collect relevant information and documents about the sponsoring employer and the alien beneficiary;

  • Attorney will review and analyze your qualifications and your (potential) job requirements including issues relating to your degree, the job duties, etc. If a foreign degree evaluation or foreign educational equivalent is required, we will advise the client accordingly;

  • Attorney will draft the job description and design the qualifications based on the information provided by the employer and the alien beneficiary;

  • Attorney will discuss the job descriptions and qualification requirements with the alien-beneficiary;

  • Attorney will work with the employer to revise and finalize the job descriptions and qualification requirements;

  • Attorney will help the employer to register on the PERM online filing system;

  • Attorney will submit the necessary information to obtain a Prevailing Wage determination from the National Prevailing Wage and Helpdesk Center (NPWHC);

  • Attorney will advise the employer on legal procedures applicable to the job recruitment process according to the DOL’s rules and guidelines;

  • Attorney will draft a job posting and propose advertising and posting schedules for the employer’s review and approval;

  • Attorney will arrange newspaper advertisements, job orders (if state allows), and all external postings upon receiving the employer’s and alien’s consent as to the content of the advertisement and posting;

  • Attorney will arrange the job posting via an advertisement agent;

  • Attorney will work with the employer on arranging other applicable recruitment activities. For example, if the job opening is to be posted on the employer’s website, the attorney will prepare the content and give it to the employer for posting. The attorney can also refer a recruiting firm to the employer for recruitment purposes. Recruiting through a recruiting firm is one of the qualified additional recruitment activities;

  • Attorney will offer legal guidelines to the employer on screening and interviewing applicants;

  • Attorney will co-ordinate the recruitment with the employer, work with the employer on analyzing the job applications that are received, and provide a professional opinion on responding to those inquires;

  • Attorney will offer convenient forms for the employer to use to document the entire recruitment process and will also prepare an entire set of documents that are ready for auditing in the case of an audit;

  • Attorney will review all the recruitment information collected from the employer and draft the recruitment report on behalf of the employer;

  • Attorney will prepare the online PERM application form and provide a copy to the employer and the alien beneficiary for review before filing;

  • Attorney will submit the online PERM petition upon approval from the employer and the beneficiary;

  • Attorney will document the entire process and prepare an entire set of documents ready for auditing;

  • If the DOL chooses to audit the application, the attorney will work with the employer to respond to any DOL auditing request;

  • Attorney will communicate with the DOL afterwards regarding any legal issues and respond to any requests for additional evidence on your case