Labor Certification is the standard way for obtaining the U.S. Green Card through an employment-based sponsor. The thrust of the process is to determine whether there are any qualified U.S. workers (defined as U.S. citizens or permanent residents) for the position. If no qualified U.S. Workers exist, then the foreign national is able to proceed towards permanent residency. The procedure is a lengthy and complicated process, usually requiring approximately 1-4 years for completion.

A sponsoring employer in the U.S. is a requirement for labor certification.

Frequently Asked Questions About Labor Certification

1. What is meant by 'labor certification?

2. What are the steps involved in the labor certification process?

3. What is involved with the labor certification application?

4. What is RIR (Reduction in Recruitment?

5. When is the visa petition (I-140) filed?

6. What is adjustment of status?

7. Do I need to be in the U.S. for a sponsoring employer to file a labor certification application on my behalf?

8. How can MDgreencard.com help me in this process?

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

1. What is meant by "labor certification"?

In order to obtain permanent resident status (resulting in the acquisition of a "Green Card") through employment in the United States, the process generally requires the showing that there are no qualified American workers available or willing to accept the position offered to the prospective immigrant. This process is known as "labor certification" and it involves the oversight of the United States Department of Labor as well as the U.S. Immigration Service at later stages.

Near the conclusion of the process, when the U.S. Department of Labor certifies that there no U.S. Workers available or willing to accept the particular position, they are considered to have 'certified' the labor application - hence 'labor certification'.

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2. What are the steps involved in the labor certification process?

The labor certification consists of three steps: the labor certification application, the visa petition, and the adjustment of status application (or less frequently consular processing).

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3. What is involved with the labor certification application?

An application for labor certification is a request by an employer for the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to certify that the employer has demonstrated a labor shortage of a position in a particular geographic region. To reach this conclusion, the DOL must be persuaded that the employer has actively recruited Unites States workers at the prevailing wage and working conditions for the position.

The DOL has established two paths for processing these applications: a normal path and an expedited path called a "Reduction in Recruitment" (RIR) request. Under the normal path the employer, through his attorney, submits the labor certification application to the State Employment Agency. This Agency oversees the test of the labor market through a recruitment process for the position. The goal of this process is to determine whether there are qualified U.S. Workers available for the position. Under the normal path, the State Employment Agency internally lists the job at its office for 30 days, the employer runs an advertisement in a newspaper for three consecutive days, and the employer posts a job announcement at the work site. All responses to this recruitment process are sent to the State Employment Agency, which screens the resumes and refers the resumes of qualified applicants to the employer for review and/or interview. After all qualified applicants have been interviewed, the State Employment Agency forwards the application, the original resumes of the applicants and any responses or clarifications from the employer to the DOL for final review.

The DOL then reviews the employer's response to the recruitment instructions. If the agency agrees that the employer had justifiable reasons for rejecting the applicants who responded to the recruitment, it will issue the certification and that completes the labor certification process.

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4. What is RIR (Reduction in Recruitment?

Reduction in recruitment is a process utilized to speed up approval of the labor certification by the U.S. Department of Labor. To qualify for RIR processing, the sponsoring employer must have engaged in at least 6 months of extensive recruitment according to industry standards for the position offered to the prospective immigrant prior to the filing of the labor certification application.
The following kinds of documentation may be used to demonstrate that the employer has actively recruited over a six month period:

• Tear Sheets from at least 3-4 Advertisements in Newspapers of General Circulation
  
  
• Advertisements in related industry or trade journal
  
  
• Evidence of Participation in Job Fairs such as Program Guides or Invoices
  
  
• Copy of Recruitment through Web Sites
  
  
• Evidence of On-campus Recruiting such as Program Guides or Invoices
  
  
• Radio Recruitment Invoices or Ad Scripts
  
  
• Announcements from Employer Open House Recruiting Events
  
  
• Evidence of an Employee Referral Program
  
  
• Letters or Invoices from Recruiting Agencies

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5. When is the visa petition (I-140) filed?

Once the U.S. Department of Labor has certified the labor application, the next step is the filing of the I-140 petition with the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS). At this point, the INS has two concerns. The first concern is that the employer has the ability to pay the stated wage. The second concern is that the foreign national satisfies all of the requirements set forth on the labor certification application and has documentary evidence thereof. Therefore, if prior experience in a specific set of skills has been required on the labor certification application, the foreign national must obtain letters from prior employers establishing that the foreign national obtained this experience.

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6. What is adjustment of status?

After the INS approves the I-140 visa petition, the individual can file an application for adjustment of status (the process whereby a nonimmigrant requests his or her status changed to that of an immigrant), as long as his or her priority date is current. Spouses and unmarried minor children of the primary immigrant may also file for adjustment as derivatives of the employee. The INS examines the applications to confirm that the candidate and his or her derivatives are eligible to become residents of the United States. Applicants for adjustment, including the derivative relatives, may receive permission to travel and work while the adjustment application is pending.

Occasionally, the candidate or his or her derivative relatives may wish or need to process their applications through a United States Consulate abroad instead of filing the applications with the INS in the United States. In such cases, the INS is requested to send the approved visa petition (the I-140 approved by the INS after stage two) to the Department of State. Once the Department of State receives the petition at its processing center in New Hampshire, it notifies the beneficiary and sends the relevant paperwork to the appropriate United States consulate for final processing.

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7. Do I need to be in the U.S. For a sponsoring employer to file a labor certification application on my behalf?

No. The labor certification process can proceed regardless of where you are presently working or residing.

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8. How can MDgreencard.com help me in this process?

We have substantial experience in the labor certification process for physicians and scientists, and a properly prepared and filed application can make the difference between an approval or a refusal.

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