Immigration Lawyer in Ohio

PERM / Labor Certification Process

The United States of America has, for centuries, been viewed worldwide as a land of prosperity where anyone could go to fulfill their dreams and achieve their goals. The unfortunate fact, however, is that the U.S. economy cannot stand up to the pressure of unlimited immigration in any given year, as there are only a certain number of employment positions available at one time. Further complicating the matter is the fact that many alien workers would gladly accept a lower wage than most citizens in exchange for the opportunity to live and work in this country. In an effort to shield U.S. workers from the possibility of reduced wages and unemployment as a result of immigration, the government imposes the requirement of labor certification upon companies seeking to hire immigrants with certain types of employment-based permanent resident visas.

Before a foreign national can obtain an EB-2 or EB-3 work visa to gain permanent residence in the U.S., he or she must be the subject of an approved petition filed by a sponsoring employer. In turn, the employer must first have secured labor certification from the Department of Labor. The process of obtaining such certification involves demonstrating that there are not enough qualified and available U.S. workers who are willing to fill the offered position at the prevailing wage and that the hiring of an alien worker will not have a negative effect on the wages and working conditions of U.S. workers holding similar positions. Certain types of employment immigration visas are not subject to the labor certification requirement, on the grounds that they are intended for individuals with outstanding skill and ability or for investors who will be creating new jobs for U.S. workers.

About the PERM System

The Program Electronic Review Management system, known as PERM, is a relatively new approach to labor certification. Whereas older processes could require extended periods of time to gather, process, and verify the information, PERM is intended to make it possible to complete the process within 60 days. Once the Department of Labor has granted labor certification to the business seeking to hire an immigrant, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services offices are notified so that the petitioner can proceed with the next step in the process with a minimum of delay. Contact an Ohio immigration lawyer at Robert Brown LLC today to learn more about your available options.