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PERM is the labor-market and worker-protection determination. The I-140 is USCIS’s immigrant petition decision. Understanding which agency decides which question—and the short window for transferring an approved labor certification to USCIS—prevents the most consequential timing and document mistakes.
PERM and I-140 at a glance
The filings serve different purposes, produce different decisions and are handled by different agencies. The comparison below applies to a PERM-based employment case; some employment-based immigrant petitions do not require labor certification and therefore follow a different sequence and priority-date analysis.
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| Question | PERM labor certification (ETA-9089) | Form I-140 petition |
|---|---|---|
| Deciding agency | U.S. Department of Labor, through its Office of Foreign Labor Certification | U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services |
| Employer’s document | Form ETA-9089 and the resulting certification or determination | Form I-140, with the certified ETA-9089 attached when labor certification is required |
| Decision being sought | Certification that the permanent opportunity meets DOL’s labor-market and worker-protection test | Approval of the employer’s immigrant petition for the foreign worker under the applicable employment category |
| Normal order | Filed first; certification must be obtained before the I-140 in a PERM-required case | Filed after certification in the ordinary PERM-based sequence |
| Key deadline | A certified labor certification is valid for 180 days for submission to USCIS with the I-140 | Must be filed with the certified labor certification before that 180-day period expires |
| Priority-date effect | DOL’s ETA-9089 receipt date is used as the priority date in labor-certification cases | USCIS adjudicates the petition; the PERM filing date remains the relevant priority-date date for this route |
DOL explains the permanent-labor-certification program at its Permanent Labor Certification guidance. The agency’s forms information is available on the Foreign Labor Certification Forms page.
What PERM labor certification actually does
It tests the permanent job opportunity
PERM is the employer’s request for DOL to certify a specific permanent employment opportunity. DOL describes certification as a finding that there are not enough able, willing, qualified and available U.S. workers for the opportunity, and that hiring the foreign worker will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of similarly employed U.S. workers.
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That finding concerns the job opportunity and the labor market, not a final determination that the worker will receive a green card. DOL is not approving an immigrant petition through PERM, and PERM approval does not replace the later USCIS petition.
It is filed on ETA-9089
The employer submits Form ETA-9089 to DOL. The application records the permanent opportunity and the information DOL needs to evaluate the labor-market test. DOL’s recruitment requirements vary with the occupation and the applicable route, so the exact recruitment record depends on the case rather than on a single universal checklist.
It protects U.S. wages and working conditions
The certification includes a worker-protection component. DOL’s official determination language states: “there are not sufficient workers who are able, willing, and qualified, and who will be available at the time of application for a visa and admission into the United States and place needed to fill the job opportunities for which certification is sought, and the permanent employment of the foreign worker will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of workers in the United States similarly employed.”
This is the statutory-style finding DOL makes for the certification. It is not a guarantee of visa issuance, adjustment of status, I-140 approval or any other individual immigration result. The wording appears in DOL’s ETA-9089 Final Determination.
What a PERM approval does not do
- It does not constitute an I-140 petition.
- It does not move the case to USCIS automatically.
- It does not itself grant an immigrant visa, permanent residence or work authorization.
- It does not establish that every employment-based immigrant category requires labor certification.
What Form I-140 actually does
It asks USCIS to approve an immigrant petition
Form I-140 is a separate petition filed with USCIS by the employer in the employment-based case. USCIS decides whether the petition meets the requirements of the immigrant classification being requested. In a route that requires labor certification, the employer submits the certified ETA-9089 as supporting evidence.
The I-140 therefore answers a different question from PERM. DOL asks whether the permanent job opportunity passed the labor-market and worker-protection test. USCIS asks whether the employer’s immigrant petition qualifies under the applicable classification and whether the submitted evidence supports that petition.
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The certified ETA-9089 is supporting evidence, not a substitute form
Submitting an old, unsigned or uncertified ETA-9089 is not the same as submitting the certified labor certification. DOL’s forms guidance says USCIS accepts the signed version issued electronically by the Office of Foreign Labor Certification upon certification for the relevant I-140 filing. The final-determination document identifies the certification and its validity period.
Because USCIS and DOL make separate decisions, an approved PERM does not compel I-140 approval. Conversely, an I-140 petition in a category that does not require labor certification is not evidence that a PERM should have been filed. The required sequence depends on the immigrant category.
How the two stages fit together
For the ordinary PERM-based route, the employer should treat the process as a handoff from one agency to another, with a defined deadline:
- Define the permanent opportunity. The employer identifies the permanent position for which certification is sought and prepares the ETA-9089 information and required recruitment record for the applicable occupation and route.
- File ETA-9089 with DOL. DOL receives the labor-certification application. The date DOL receives it is important later because DOL says USCIS and the Department of State use that date as the priority date in labor-certification cases.
- Wait for DOL’s determination. DOL may certify the application or issue another determination. A certification is the document needed for the next stage; merely having an application pending is not enough to file a PERM-required I-140.
- Record the certification date and expiration date. DOL states that a certified labor certification is valid for 180 days. The employer must plan the USCIS filing within that window.
- Prepare Form I-140 and the certified labor certification. The employer uses the certified, signed electronic version issued by OFLC, not an unsigned draft or an obsolete copy, and includes it where the immigrant category requires labor certification.
- File the I-140 with USCIS before the 180-day period ends. This is the agency-to-agency transition. DOL’s certification does not transmit itself to USCIS and does not remain usable indefinitely.
- Track the petition separately. After filing, the I-140 is a USCIS matter. Its adjudication is distinct from the completed DOL labor-certification stage and from later visa-number or adjustment steps.
Each stage has its own receipt, decision and potential issue. Keeping the DOL record and the USCIS petition record separate makes it easier to identify whether a problem concerns recruitment and certification, the petition evidence or a later immigration step.
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DOL says a certified labor certification is valid for 180 days and expires if it is not submitted to USCIS with the I-140 within that period. The practical consequence is that certification is not an open-ended approval to be used whenever convenient.
What to do immediately after certification
- Save the electronic certified ETA-9089 and the final determination in the case file.
- Confirm the certification date and calculate the 180-day submission window.
- Use the signed version issued electronically by OFLC for the relevant I-140 filing.
- Coordinate the petition package early enough to allow for internal review, signatures and delivery to USCIS.
- Keep proof of the USCIS submission date and the complete package that was filed.
If the 180-day period passes without submission to USCIS, the certification expires under DOL’s rule. The employer should not assume that attaching a late certification to an I-140 will preserve it; a case-specific immigration professional is the appropriate source for advice about any missed deadline and possible next steps.
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Priority dates: why the PERM receipt date matters
DOL says the date it receives the ETA-9089 application is used by USCIS and the Department of State as the priority date in labor-certification cases. In other words, the relevant date is tied to DOL’s receipt of the PERM application, not to the later date on which the employer files the I-140.
This rule must be stated narrowly. It describes labor-certification cases. Not every I-140 has a PERM filing behind it, so it would be incorrect to apply the ETA-9089 receipt-date rule to every employment-based petition.
The priority date is a place in the immigrant-visa queue; it is not a promise that a visa number is immediately available and it does not turn PERM into an approved I-140. The later immigration steps use the priority date under the rules applicable to the case.
Current PERM processing snapshot
DOL’s processing dashboard is a dated operational snapshot, not a guaranteed timetable for an individual employer. As of October 5, 2026, the Office of Foreign Labor Certification dashboard listed December 2025 priority dates in its analyst-review and audit-review queues. It reported an average of 336 calendar days for analyst-review determinations in August 2026. An average for audit review was not available in the returned dashboard data.
DOL cautions that an individual case may take more or less time depending on its material facts and circumstances. The queue date and 336-day figure therefore should be used for planning context only. They are not a prediction of when a particular ETA-9089 will be decided, and they do not measure USCIS’s separate I-140 adjudication.
For the latest dashboard information, consult DOL’s OFLC Processing Times page and note the “as of” date shown there. A number without its date, queue type and review stage can be misleading.
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Documents and version control
Use the certified electronic form
DOL’s forms page distinguishes the certified form issued electronically by OFLC from working copies. For the I-140 filing, USCIS accepts the signed version issued electronically upon certification for the relevant filing. Keep the final determination with the certified form so the petition record shows what DOL certified and how long the certification remains valid.
Do not confuse a draft with a certification
An unsigned ETA-9089, an older saved copy or a printout that does not reflect OFLC’s electronic certification is not interchangeable with the certified labor certification. A document can contain the same job information and still fail to establish that DOL issued the certification required for a PERM-based petition.
Preserve the chronology
A complete file should make the sequence visible: DOL receipt of ETA-9089, DOL certification and final determination, calculation of the 180-day period, and USCIS submission of the I-140. This chronology helps resolve questions about the priority date and whether the certification was submitted before expiration.
Common misunderstandings and how to avoid them
“PERM is the green-card petition.”
It is not. PERM is DOL’s certification of the job opportunity after the labor-market test. The employer still has to file the separate I-140 with USCIS when the category requires labor certification.
“Once PERM is certified, the I-140 is automatic.”
It is not. USCIS conducts its own petition adjudication. A certified labor certification is a required component for a PERM-based petition, but it does not replace the I-140 or guarantee that USCIS will approve it.
“The 180 days starts whenever the employer is ready.”
DOL describes the certification as valid for 180 days. Employers should use the certification and final-determination dates to calculate the window rather than waiting until the petition is nearly complete.
“The I-140 filing date creates the PERM priority date.”
For labor-certification cases, DOL says the priority date is the date DOL received the ETA-9089 application. The I-140 filing is later in the sequence.
“A processing-time average is a case estimate.”
The 336-calendar-day analyst-review average reported for August 2026 is an agency-wide dated average. DOL expressly notes that individual cases can take more or less time, and the figure does not cover USCIS’s I-140 decision.
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Some employment-based immigrant categories do not require labor certification. Before assuming the PERM sequence applies, identify the immigrant category and its filing requirements.
A practical handoff checklist
Employer checklist before filing ETA-9089
- Confirm that the intended immigrant category requires labor certification.
- Identify the permanent job opportunity and the applicable DOL recruitment route.
- Prepare the ETA-9089 information and retain the recruitment record supporting the application.
- Record the exact date DOL receives the application.
Employer checklist after certification
- Download and preserve the signed electronic ETA-9089 issued by OFLC.
- Read the final determination and record the 180-day validity period.
- Prepare the I-140 package using the certified form, not a draft or older copy.
- File with USCIS before the labor certification expires and retain proof of submission.
Worker checklist for understanding the case
- Ask whether the proposed immigrant category requires PERM or follows a different route.
- Request the DOL receipt date if you need to understand the priority-date basis for a labor-certification case.
- Distinguish a DOL certification notice from an USCIS I-140 receipt or approval notice; they are separate agency records.
- Do not treat a DOL processing average as a personal case deadline or an I-140 prediction.
What happens after the I-140 filing
Once the employer files the certified labor certification with Form I-140, the labor-certification stage is complete from the standpoint of the DOL-to-USCIS handoff. USCIS then evaluates the immigrant petition under its own rules. Any later visa-number, consular-processing or adjustment-of-status question is a separate step and cannot be answered by the PERM approval alone.
The key recordkeeping principle is simple: retain the DOL certification and its validity evidence, the USCIS petition filing proof and the priority-date information as separate parts of one chronology. That prevents a DOL decision from being mistaken for a USCIS decision and makes the 180-day deadline visible.
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