H-1B and other nonimmigrant foreign workers can look forward to the processing of their work permit applications. The Department of Labor has resumed processing of employer requests for prevailing wages and labor certification determinations for temporary and permanent employment in the United States.
The Office of Foreign Labor Certification’s (OFLC) Foreign Labor Application Gateway (FLAG) system is now accessible and permits system users to prepare and submit new applications as well as submit and receive information associated with their applications pending a final determination.
The Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) has confirmed that its Foreign Labor Application Gateway (FLAG) system is fully operational, enabling employers to file new applications and track pending cases.
Aizada Marat, Founder of Alma Immigration, in an X post shares the latest developments:
“LCAs (required for H-1Bs, E-3s and H-1B1s) weren’t mentioned in the announcement, but FLAG began accepting LCA filings immediately, and today we saw the first certified LCAs return.
For context: this morning (11/4), we received certification for an LCA filed on 9/25. If you exclude the shutdown period (10/1–10/31), that’s roughly a 10-day turnaround. A strong signal that pre-shutdown LCA cases are now moving again.”
In addition, OFLC’s SeasonalJobs.dol.gov system, which is an online job registry of H-2A and H-2B temporary job opportunities, has been restored to full operational status.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) fiscal year begins on October 1 every year and ends on September 30 of the following year. The new USCIS fiscal year begins October 1, 2025 and ends on September 30, 2026.
The USCIS fiscal year, which is the period when annual visa quotas are reset and made available, begins on October 1st and ends on September 30th of the following year.
The H-1B 2027 cap season will open for registrations in March 2026. The opening up of the FLAG system will enable US employers to file for cap-exempt petitions. For all H-1B petitions filed after September 21, the US employer has to pay $100,000 fee before hiring any foreign worker, under both cap and cap-exempt categories.
The March 2027 season is also likely to introduce a wage-based selection process for foreign workers. The H-1B 2027 filing season will likely introduce significant changes to the H-1B visa lottery process, implementing a weighted selection process prioritizing higher-skilled and higher-paid foreign workers.
H-2B non-agricultural temporary worker program allows U.S. employers to bring foreign workers to the United States to fill temporary non-agricultural jobs.
Foreign workers with H-2B visas are increasingly sought after in the U.S. Employers adhering to regulatory standards can utilize the H-2B program to employ foreign nationals for temporary non-agricultural jobs, with Congress establishing a yearly quota of 66,000 visas.