Permanent Residency

PERM is the new Labor Certification for the Permanent Employment of Aliens in the U.S. 

Recruitment Report

According to the Labor Department:

Yes, an employer may post a Notice of Filing indefinitely, provided that at the time of filing the permanent labor certification application, the Notice of Filing was posted for at least 10 consecutive business days and those 10 consecutive business days all fell within 30 to 180 days prior to filing the application. In addition, the Notice of Filing must contain the correct prevailing wage information, the correct job description and must comply with all other Department of Labor regulatory requirements.

According to the Labor Department:

No, the employer’s physical address does not need to be included in the advertisement. Employers may designate a central office or post office box to receive resumes from applicants, provided the advertisement makes clear where the work will be performed.

How To File

Acceptable Publications

Invalidation

According to the Labor Department:

Generally, the newspaper advertisements must be placed on two different Sundays at least 30 days, but no more than 180 days, prior to filing the application. The Sundays may be consecutive.

However, if the job opportunity is located in a rural area that does not have a newspaper that publishes a Sunday edition, the employer may use the newspaper edition with the widest circulation.

This exception applies to rural newspapers only. If a suburban newspaper has no Sunday edition, the employer must publish the Sunday advertisement in the most appropriate city newspaper that serves the suburban area.

For journals, there is no specific edition requirement, however, the advertisement must be placed at least 30 days, but no more than 180 days, prior to filing the application.

According to the Labor Department:

The PERM regulation is effective March 28, 2005, and applies to labor certification applications for the permanent employment of aliens filed on or after that date.

The chart below provides a list of the primary avenues for obtaining U.S. Permanent Residency (“Green Card” status) (also known as “Immigrant Classifications and Visas”). The chart is divided into three main groupings: (1) “General Family-Based Immigration” concerns the general types of family relationships which U.S. immigration law recognizes as providing a right to file a petition for permanent residency of the respective family members, and which is available for all nationalities; (2) “Employment-Based Immigration” concerns the general types of employment relationships, investments, or occupations which U.S. immigration law recognizes as providing a right to file a petition for permanent residency; and (3) “Other Immigrant Channels” concerns various miscellaneous avenues of petitioning for U.S. permanent residency.

In Borat! The Movie (full name Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan), Borat Sagdiyev, who claims to be a Kazakhstani journalist, travels to America in order to make a documentary about the United States, at the behest of the Kazakh Ministry of Information. This raises the question: is Borat an illegal alien?

Our office recently received a request for "corporate documents" from the BPC. The petition was for a housekeeper. Is this request sent in error or how do we respond?

According to the Labor Department:

If the application is for a domestic servant in a private household, the employer should provide a recent tax return and/or leases, utility bills, etc. that establish the domestic employer at the address on the application.

The employer has changed names. Do we have to submit a new application or may we change the original application? How should this be done?

According to the Labor Department:

The employer must submit a copy of the employer's articles of incorporation, business license, state registration, or other official documents that establish the employer as a bona fide business entity. In addition, a new ETA 750 Part A and Part B must be provided to continue the permanent foreign labor certification process. If the Form ETA 750 Part A and Part B have been returned for correction, the changes may be made on those existing documents.

Please note that the new employer or entity must be connected to the old one (a successor-in-interest) and cannot be an entirely new employer.

According to the Labor Department:

Please send the appropriate Backlog Processing Center a written request to return the original Form ETA 750 Part A and Part B. Make the appropriate change of address, date and initial the change, and return the Form ETA 750 Part A and Part B to the appropriate Backlog Processing Center. Employers who have already recruited for the position in a labor market are cautioned that a move to a new work location may require a new labor market test.

Please note that changes, additions, or deletions to the application must be initialed and dated by the employer on Part A and by the alien on Part B. It is unacceptable for the attorney representing the employer and/or alien to make amendments to the Form ETA 750.

The message on my Corrections List states that, "Consulate Location is a required entry." The alien is currently in the U.S. and will apply for adjustment here. Why must I enter a consulate location?

According to the Labor Department:

Entries are needed in items 10a or 10b on Form ETA 750, Part B. Please mark the appropriate box with an (X) and enter a complete city and foreign country (10a) or city and state (10b) on the application. Initial and date any corrections made to your application and then return the application to the appropriate Backlog Processing Center.

I am the attorney of record for a permanent foreign labor certification case. Our firm has moved and wishes to notify your office of this change. How do I do this?

According to the Labor Department:

Please send the appropriate Backlog Processing Center a letter that states the change requested and enclose a signed and dated G-28 with the updated information. A separate G-28 should be submitted for each case for which a change is requested. The form must be signed and dated by the employer and/or alien, depending on which party you represent. The attorney may send an individual letter for each case or a combined letter with the change of address and listing all affected cases (include name of employer and alien and the case number, if known).

The message on my Corrections List states, "Basic Rate Per is a required entry." The amount of pay is included on the application. What's the problem?

According to the Labor Department:

Item 12a/b on Form ETA 750 Part A must include both a rate of pay (in dollars and cents) and a period (hourly, daily, weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, or annually). Please correct, initial, and date your application accordingly and return the application to the appropriate Backlog Processing Center.

According to the Labor Department:

The new employer must submit a copy of the employer's articles of incorporation, business license, state registration, or other official documents that establish the employer as a bona fide business entity and establishes the legal buyout or "successor in interest" position. In addition, a new Form ETA 750 Part A and Part B must be provided to continue the permanent foreign labor certification process.

According to the Labor Department:

No queue will automatically get preference. We plan to allocate resources based on the number of cases in each queue. However, we anticipate that the processing time for RIR cases will be shorter that that for TR cases.

How is the 2 track system going to work, that is the RIR and TR streams?

What resources will be allocated to each?

What is the time period for each?

Will the resources be allocated such that the last TR case and RIR case will be adjudicated together at the end of the 24-30 months?

According to the Labor Department:

At this time we are not able to answer questions which are this specific other than to say that it is our goal to treat RIR and TR cases in an equitable manner.