(UNITED STATES) The Department of Labor resumed employment-based immigration casework after the late-October federal reopening, but employers and foreign workers are being warned that the PERM backlog will not ease quickly.
As of late 2025, officials are still working on applications filed in June 2024, placing average DOL processing times for non-audited cases at about 15 to 16 months (roughly 472 to 500 days). The pause triggered by the government shutdown in October added more pressure on a system already straining under record filing volumes and staffing limits. Analysts say even with processing back online, the path to clearing the logjam is measured in many months, not weeks.
Systems resumption and immediate effects
The Office of Foreign Labor Certification restored access to its electronic systems on October 31, 2025, allowing employers to once again submit labor certification filings and Prevailing Wage Determination requests. While that resumption ended several weeks of uncertainty, it did not erase the work that piled up while cases sat untouched.
The agency cautioned that longer than normal processing and response times are expected as staff address both the regular queue and the surge of filings that employers held back during the shutdown period. That means cases filed now will sit behind a substantial line, with some already waiting a year or more.
Officials confirmed the agency is working through cases in filing-date order; the reference point—June 2024 filings now under review—has become a bellwether for attorneys advising clients.
Current timeline realities
- Average processing time for non-audited PERM cases: 15 to 16 months (about 472–500 days).
- Cases that trigger an audit or a motion for reconsideration can extend many months beyond that average.
- The Department has not provided a formal forecast for when pre-shutdown productivity levels will return; internal signals point to a prolonged recovery due to tight budgets and high demand.
Temporary accommodations: 33-day automatic extension
To soften the shock for businesses whose recruitment steps or wage approvals expired during the shutdown, the agency introduced a 33-day automatic extension for impacted PERM filings.
- Employers welcomed the extra time, noting it prevented compliant recruitment from going stale during the outage.
- Labor attorneys emphasize the extension preserves eligibility for cases but does not speed adjudication—it keeps more applications alive and increases the DOL’s review workload.
Practical impacts on employers, workers, and families
The ripple effects are significant for those needing predictability to manage hiring, transfers, and visa timelines.
- Foreign workers on temporary visas plan around each step—recruitment, filing, decision—and now face longer waits.
- Employers are:
- Adjusting start dates
- Extending temporary assignments
- Budgeting for longer status-bridge periods while waiting for labor certifications
With the PERM backlog stretching past a year and a quarter for non-audited cases, and audits pushing outcomes later, planning and staffing become more complex.
Underlying causes and system constraints
The agency’s challenges predate the shutdown but were exacerbated by it.
- Annual filings had climbed to more than 160,000 PERM applications, straining limited staff capacity.
- Funding shortfalls restrict the ability to scale hiring or invest in process improvements.
- The shutdown paused forward motion; reopening resumed submissions but left a larger pile competing with a steady inflow of new filings.
VisaVerge.com analysis suggests that even a full return to normal operations will leave DOL processing timelines stretched for the foreseeable future given queue size and case complexity.
Practical guidance from immigration counsel
Immigration attorneys now advise planning on extended timelines:
- Assume well over a year from filing to decision in best-case planning.
- Expect total project timelines (from recruitment start to final approval) to span 22 to 36 months, accounting for:
- Recruitment and wage steps
- Possible audits
- Downstream immigrant visa processing
The late-October reopening, while welcome, does not translate into quick relief. Patience remains necessary through much of the next year.
How the backlog moves and why it’s slow to shrink
The June 2024 reference point is shorthand for how far the agency must go. The practical workflow after reopening often involves:
- Triage of time-sensitive issues
- Addressing aging cases with pending requests for evidence
- Restarting internal review chains paused during the shutdown
This initial ramp-up is slow, and combined with elevated volumes, it produces months of continued delay. The agency’s messaging about longer than normal processing aims to reset public expectations.
Sectoral and seasonal effects
- Tech companies, manufacturers, hospitals, and startups are recalibrating hiring and product timelines—cases expected in early 2026 may now slip into late 2026 or beyond if scrutiny occurs.
- The October pause intersected with a seasonal wave of filings (third/fourth quarter), adding to the early-winter surge once systems reopened.
- The FLAG portal’s reopening allowed submissions to resume, but downstream review steps (prevailing wage checks, recruitment verification, adjudication) remain constrained by staffing and funding.
Individual consequences and HR strategies
Workers and families face cascading decisions:
- Extend current roles, change employers, or leave the U.S. while awaiting adjudication.
- Families balance school calendars and housing choices against uncertain move dates.
- HR teams must track milestones to keep nonimmigrant status valid.
Law firms and employers are responding by:
- Grouping cases by filing month and predicted audit risk
- Presenting realistic windows to clients
- Relying more on temporary visa strategies while avoiding authorization gaps
Why audits and complexity matter
Labor certification requires careful verification of recruitment steps, prevailing wage levels, and role compliance. Audits demand more documentation and time, so audited cases typically lag the average.
- Shutdown interruptions increase complexity: time-sensitive steps may need re-verification.
- PERM and Prevailing Wage Determination workflows interact—delays in one can delay the other.
Official resources and tracking
The U.S. Department of Labor Office of Foreign Labor Certification posts agency updates and performance information, including processing trends and notional timelines, on its public site:
These updates offer a useful barometer of how the “months under review” are moving and whether new accommodations appear.
Policy trade-offs and system-wide implications
The 33-day accommodation is designed to avoid penalizing employers and workers for shutdown-caused expirations. It protects fairness but increases the number of cases reaching adjudication.
- A measure meant to preserve eligibility can increase processing volume, paradoxically extending the time needed to clear the backlog.
- Industry groups argue more resources and staffing would shorten delays, but budget uncertainty makes a near-term staffing surge unlikely.
Outlook and final takeaways
- The backlog will likely remain a defining feature of employment-based immigration planning for many months.
- Expect continued averages of 15 to 16 months for non-audited PERM decisions, with audited or reconsideration paths stretching much longer.
- Incremental progress will come as staff clear older cases; however, visible movement month-to-month may be measured in weeks, not days.
- The best practical advice: plan for more delay than two years ago, budget accordingly, and manage timelines with the assumption that quick fixes are unlikely.
Operations are back and systems are up, but the PERM backlog is real. The late-October restart was only the first step—the long march through the accumulated cases from mid-2024 will continue into next year and beyond.
Frequently Asked Questions
This Article in a Nutshell
After the October 2025 reopening, the DOL restored FLAG access on October 31 but faces a large PERM backlog. Officials are processing June 2024 filings, with non‑audited cases averaging 15–16 months (472–500 days). A 33‑day automatic extension preserves eligibility for filings affected by the shutdown but increases the review queue. Employers and foreign workers should plan for extended timelines, potential audits that add months, and manage hiring and visa strategies accordingly.
