Where are we next month? The United States Immigration and Citizenship Services (USCIS) has announced that for the September 2024 Visa Bulletin, applicants must use the Final Action Dates chart for employment-based preference...more
Filing a PERM (Program Electronic Review Management) application is a critical process for most U.S. employers seeking to hire foreign workers. One of the significant hurdles in this process is obtaining a Prevailing Wage...more
In light of prolonged Department of Labor (DOL) processing times and recent regulatory settlements involving the DOL and Department of Justice, employers are reevaluating their approaches to securing permanent residence...more
Two recent developments involving the U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division ("DOJ") highlight potential risks and opportunities for companies facing immigration-related employment matters....more
As we discussed in a recent post, equal pay transparency (EPT) laws are on the rise across the country. While complex in their own right, EPT laws introduce new risks and challenges for employers undergoing an already...more
The U.S. immigration system poses significant hurdles for foreign nationals seeking employment within the United States. With few exceptions, employer sponsorship is generally required. For many, the sole avenue to obtain...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: If Congress cannot resolve funding issues by 11:59 pm EST on September 30, 2023, resulting in a federal government shutdown, it will have a ripple effect on employers, both large and small, with an impact...more
In April 2023, the long-anticipated new and modernized PERM Form 9089 was introduced to the public by the U.S. Department of Labor, Foreign Labor Certification (FLC) unit. The PERM process permits an employer to hire a...more
Over the past couple of years, multiple states have enacted pay transparency laws with the goal of increasing wage transparency for job seekers. The objective of these laws is ultimately to achieve pay equality as job...more
Employers know that U.S. immigration laws are complex, and the Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) long processing delays – coupled with recent layoffs in the tech industry – have further complicated matters by adding new fact...more
Equal Pay Transparency (EPT) laws have been passed in several states and localities, potentially impacting the permanent employment certification (PERM)/H-1B labor condition application (LCA) process for employers conducting...more
As of November 1, 2022, most employers in New York City must comply with the City’s new pay transparency legislation. The legislation amends the N.Y. City Human Rights Law (“NYCHRL”), requiring covered employers to include...more
Introduction - The Perm Labor Certification process can be described as various pieces of a puzzle being identified and carefully positioned, with the end goal of forming a full picture in the smoothest and most efficient...more
After federal courts blocked their first attempt in December, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) recently published a new final rule seeking to again increase the minimum wage paid to foreign workers when sponsored for an...more
On December 1, 2020, a U.S. Federal District Court in California set aside the two Interim Final Rules announced in October by the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) and the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”). ...more
The US District Court for the Northern District of California on Tuesday set aside two Interim Final Rules (IFRs) that sought to restrict severely eligibility for the H-1B Specialty Occupation nonimmigrant category....more
After months of speculation, the Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) “Strengthening Wage Protections for the Temporary and Permanent Employment of Certain Aliens in the United States” rule was finally released to the public. It...more
With successive presidential proclamations and executive orders in recent months, there can be considerable confusion around what type of immigration petitions and applications can be filed, and who can enter the United...more
The U.S. Departments of Labor (DOL) and Homeland Security (DHS) have jointly announced a new initiative to share data and records on immigrant and nonimmigrant petitions and workers....more
PERM can be one of the most confusing and frustrating portions of the employment-based Green Card process for employers. PERM is driven by numerous regulatory requirements and the slightest mistake can doom a Green Card...more
As Congress has been unable to pass a federal spending bill, the federal government has temporarily shut down. We are closely monitoring the situation and will provide updates as information becomes available. Our...more