Immigration Operations After the Federal Shutdown
October 17, 2013
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The Department of Labor’s Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) is expected to reopen soon, as government agencies return to work in the wake of last night’s passage of a federal budget and debt ceiling bill. It may be several days, however, before OFLC’s PERM, labor condition application (LCA) and prevailing wage functions are operating fully.
As of this morning, the PERM and iCERT online application systems remain offline. When they resume operation, employers and foreign nationals should expect processing delays and other slowdowns for several weeks at least, as DOL works through a large backlog of filings and deals with an expected surge of new cases. The slowdown may affect employers' ability to file H-1B petitions with USCIS, which require a DOL-certified LCA.
USCIS’s E-Verify system, which was offline during the shutdown, is now operating.
Fragomen is closely monitoring federal immigration operations in the wake of the shutdown and will provide frequent updates in the coming days. If you have any questions about cases affected by the shutdown, please contact your designated Fragomen professional.
As of this morning, the PERM and iCERT online application systems remain offline. When they resume operation, employers and foreign nationals should expect processing delays and other slowdowns for several weeks at least, as DOL works through a large backlog of filings and deals with an expected surge of new cases. The slowdown may affect employers' ability to file H-1B petitions with USCIS, which require a DOL-certified LCA.
USCIS’s E-Verify system, which was offline during the shutdown, is now operating.
Fragomen is closely monitoring federal immigration operations in the wake of the shutdown and will provide frequent updates in the coming days. If you have any questions about cases affected by the shutdown, please contact your designated Fragomen professional.
