International Faculty, Staff, Researchers

OFLC Stakeholder Engagements

Links to summaries and key takeaways from public stakeholder meetings conducted by the Department of Labor Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC), prepared by the NAFSA ISSRP EB subcommittee.

USCIS Restores Deference in EB Petition Extension Adjudications

April 27, 2021

A revision to USCIS Policy Manual 2 USCIS-PM A.4.B. restores a certain amount of deference to employment-based petition extension adjudications, and requires adjudicators to "obtain supervisory approval before deviating from a prior approval in their final decision." USCIS Policy Alert PA-2021-05

Amendments to 8 CFR 214.2(h) Effective December 7, 2020

On October 8, 2020, DHS published an interim final rule at 85 FR 63918 (October 8, 2020) titled Strengthening the H-1B Nonimmigrant Visa Classification Program. The rule is effective on December 7, 2020. Changes include revised definitions of and standards for a "specialty occupation" and "employer

Recent Employment-Based Changes and Proposals

September 16, 2021

The final quarter of 2020 and the first quarter of 2021 saw a number of rule making initiatives by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Department of Labor (DOL), related to the H-1B specialty occupation category and to a certain extent the PERM labor certification process. This page

DOL Interim Final Rule on OES and Prevailing Wage Determinations

January 28, 2021

On December 1, 2020, the October 8, 2020 DOL interim final rule was set aside by a U.S. District Court, and is no longer in effect. Related recent updates On January 14, 2021, DOL published a final rule titled Strengthening Wage Protections for the Temporary and Permanent Employment of Certain

Proposed Revisions to Permanent Labor Certification Forms

September 10, 2020

On July 20, 2020, the Department of Labor Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) posted a news item regarding public comment on proposed changes to the ETA 9089 permanent labor certification (PERM) form. Comments are due by September 18, 2020. Read NAFSA's comment letter (September 10, 2020)

Proclamation Suspending Entry of Certain H, J, and L Nonimmigrants

April 1, 2021

Proclamation 10052 of June 22, 2020, Proclamation Suspending Entry of Aliens Who Present a Risk to the U.S. Labor Market Following the Coronavirus Outbreak Updates: This proclamation expired on March 31, 2021. As of April 1, 2021, President Biden had not renewed or replaced it. DOS confirmed this in

USCIS Policy Memo Rescinds Prior Memos on Third-Party Placements, Contracts and Itineraries

In a June 17, 2020 policy memorandum (USCIS PM-602-0114), USCIS rescinded the following policy memoranda and issued updated policy guidance in their place: Determining Employer-Employee Relationship for Adjudication of H-1B Petitions, Including Third-Party Site Placements (Reference AFM Chapter 31.3

OFLC Announces Migration of Website to New Domain

On June 3, 2020, the Department of Labor Office of Foreign Labor Certification announced that in July it will move the OFLC website to a new domain. The OFLC news item is reproduced below. June 3, 2020. OFLC Announces Migration of Website to New Domain. Please be advised that the Office of Foreign

OFLC Will Permanently Issue Electronic PERM Labor Certifications

October 15, 2020

On March 25, 2020, the Department of Labor Office of Foreign Labor Certification began sending approved permanent labor certifications by email, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. On September 25, 2020, OFLC "announced that it is permanently adopting the electronic issuance of PERM labor