If the application was filed online, the employer may withdraw its pending application by

accessing the employer’s account in the Permanent Online System. Instructions are available

via the PERM Online System website under the “Online Help” tab. In addition, the

employer may submit a withdrawal request via the “Upload Documents” and the Help Desk

Inquiry tools in the Permanent Online System.

If the application was filed by mail, or in the event an employer is unable to withdraw the

pending application electronically, the employer should send a withdrawal request by e-

In the body of the e-mail, include the following information:

As an alternative to e-mail, a letter with the above information must be mailed to the Atlanta

National Processing Center at the following address:

IMPORTANT NOTE: While an employer may request to withdraw a pending application,

the Atlanta National Processing Center is under no regulatory requirement to accept any

submitted withdrawal request. Moreover, if an employer seeks to withdraw an application

after it receives an audit notification letter, the employer is not relieved of its requirement to

comply with the audit procedure provisions of 20 CFR § 656.20 and must submit all required

audit information and/or documentation before the withdrawal will be processed. The

employer must submit the required information and documentation to the Certifying Officer

by the date specified in the audit notification letter.

making its withdrawal request by mail must send it to the Atlanta National Processing Center

at the following address:

subject line of the letter or e-mail.

In the body of the letter or e-mail, include the following information:

IMPORTANT NOTE: An employer making a withdrawal request by mail must enclose,

application for the same foreign worker in the same job opportunity?

After requesting a withdrawal, an employer may not file a new Form ETA-9089 for the same

foreign worker in the same job opportunity until the Atlanta National Processing Center has

verified one of the following:

B. Employer receives confirmation (via standard U.S. Mail or e-mail) from the Atlanta

The Office of Foreign Labor Certification recognizes that there are times when the employer

may have a specific reason for seeking post-expiration withdrawal. In those rare instances,

the employer must send a request via the Help Desk Inquiry tool in the Permanent Online

System or an email to [email protected] explaining the circumstances why it believes it

is necessary to note a withdrawal in the PERM system. These requests will be considered on

a case-by-case basis.

Upon receipt of a Final Determination letter denying labor certification, the employer has the

option to make a Request for Reconsideration or a Request for Review.

In a Request for Reconsideration (20 CFR § 656.24(g)), the employer asks the Certifying

Officer (CO) to re-evaluate the CO’s own denial decision. The Request for Reconsideration

must be made no later than thirty (30) calendar days from the date on the Final Determination

letter. The Request for Reconsideration generally can only include documentation the CO

previously received. The only new documentation that the employer may submit is

documentation that existed at the time the application was filed, but that the employer did not

have an opportunity to present. This regulatory provision grants a narrow exception. The

a Request for Review with the Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals (BALCA) (20

CFR § 656.26). This request for BALCA’s additional review must be made no later than 30

calendar days from the date of the Notice.

In contrast, the employer may skip the Request for Reconsideration by the CO option and

instead make a Request for Review (§ 656.26) by BALCA only. Like the Request for

Reconsideration, the Request for Review must be filed no later than thirty (30) calendar days

from the date on the Final Determination letter. The Request for Review may contain only

legal argument(s) and evidence that was presented to the CO prior to the CO’s decision.

If an employer can prove that a correction is necessary to correct a mistake by the

Department, it may request corrections to the denied application by filing a written Request

for Reconsideration within thirty (30) calendar days from the date on the denial letter.

If the CO accepts the correction, the CO will make the change to the Form ETA-9089. The

application will be returned to “in process” status and then will be processed according to the

priority date (Note: Please know that the priority date remains the same). If the CO does not

denial of the application, what other actions can I take?

If the CO upholds (or agrees with) the denial of the application, the CO will issue a Notice of

Decision (Notice) to the employer. The Notice will inform the employer that it has the

option to file a Request for Review by the Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals

(BALCA). The CO will not automatically forward the appeal file to BALCA. The employer

must affirmatively request review by BALCA, in writing, no later than thirty (30) calendar

days from the date on the Notice.

Processing Center and a Request for Review before the Board of Alien Labor

Certification Appeals (BALCA)?

No. The employer must affirmatively state in writing whether it is requesting reconsideration

by the Certifying Officer (CO) or administrative review by BALCA. To effectively protect

each employer’s due process rights, a submission that is vague or asks for both

reconsideration and BALCA review will be treated as a Request for Reconsideration.

Notice of Decision (Notice) to the employer. The Notice will explain to the employer its

option to request review by BALCA. Such request must be filed in writing no later than

An employer's cover letter should expressly state at the top of the letter the phrase “Request

for BALCA Review Only” to notify the Certifying Officer (CO) that it desires BALCA

review without reconsideration by the CO. Upon receipt of the Request for Review, the

ANPC will send the appeal file to BALCA.

forwarded to the Board of Alien Labor Certification (BALCA) by the Certifying

Officer? What information is contained in copies of the appeal file sent to the employer

and its attorney/agent of record?

The appeal file sent to BALCA contains a transmittal letter, a table of contents, the request

for review, the complete application file, including the Form ETA-9089, and copies of all

written material upon which the denial was based, including letters and emails and

documentation submitted by and to the employer and, when applicable, the employer’s

attorney or agent of record.

The Atlanta National Processing Center (ANPC) will typically email a copy of the same

appeal file sent to BALCA to the employer and to its attorney/agent of record. However, if

for some reason ANPC must physically mail a hardcopy of the appeal and there is an

attorney/agent of record, then a complete copy of the appeal file will be mailed to the

(ANPC). Now I only want to request review by the Board of Alien Labor Certification

Appeals (BALCA). Can I now change my case's appeal classification from a Request

for Reconsideration to a Request for Review by BALCA?

If less than thirty (30) days have passed from the Final Determination, the Request for

Reconsideration can be reclassified to a Request for Review by BALCA.

thirty (30) days after the date of the Final Determination. If the Certifying Officer issues a

Notice of Decision (Notice) upholding its denial, a Request for Review by BALCA may be

An employer may inquire about the status of a Request for Reconsideration through the

Permanent Online System Help Desk Inquiry, by email at PL[email protected] or by

mailing a letter requesting the status of the request to the Atlanta National Processing Center

at:

and include the employer's name.

An employer making an inquiry about the status of a Request for Reconsideration by e-mail

must send it to the Atlanta National Processing Center at [email protected].

The subject line of the e-mail must state: "Application Status – Request for

Reconsideration.”

In the body of the letter or e-mail, include the following information:

A pay differential (also referred to as a pay adjustment, cost of labor adjustment, cost of

living adjustment, or locality pay) is a type of pay offered to workers, in addition to the base

rate of pay for a job, to account for cost differentials depending on the area where the job is

located. Typically, a pay differential is offered when an employer employs individuals in

places where the job is performed. A pay differential is generally established as a certain

amount per pay period and is paid along with the base salary on a biweekly, monthly or

Yes. Under 20 CFR § 656.10(c), the employer must certify the “conditions of employment,”

including the “offered wage.” The offered wage, in turn, must equal or exceed the prevailing

wage in the area of employment. 20 CFR § 656.10(c)(1). Pay adjustments such as locality

pay – whose purpose is to bring a worker’s wage rate at least “level” with the prevailing

wage rate in the area of employment – are part of an employee’s base pay. See Crowley v.

United States, 57 Fed. Cl. 376, 381 (2003) (finding that federal locality pay is a “special pay

employer must include the pay adjustment in Section G-1 of the Form ETA-9089.

Yes. Pursuant to 20 CFR § 656.10(d)(4), the NOF must state the rate of pay. The rate of pay

is the wage offered to the interested person, whether a U.S. citizen or foreign national, for the

job opportunity at the worksite location. As a pay differential is part of the offered wage,

employers must include any pay differential in the rate of pay when completing the NOF.

anticipated at this time. How do I include a locality-based pay differential in the Form

ETA-9089 and Notice of Filing (NOF) to appropriately apprise U.S. workers of the

offered wage?

As noted above, if the employer can anticipate the various worksites, it must disclose any

locality-based pay differential in the ETA Form 9141 and the Form ETA-9089, and all

use the location of its Headquarters to determine its recruitment and prevailing wage. Section

G-1 of the Form ETA-9089 must state the wage offered at Headquarters, including the

differential.