PERM vs LCA vs H-1B: Which process does what?

What is the difference between PERM and LCA?

PERM is the permanent labor certification an employer obtains before most employment-based green card petitions. An LCA is a labor condition application that supports a temporary H-1B, H-1B1 or E-3 petition. Both are Department of Labor processes, but they lead to different immigration outcomes.

Five steps that are often mistaken for one another
Step	Agency	What it does	Who files	Leads to
PERM labor certification	Department of Labor	Certifies that there are not enough able, willing, qualified and available US workers for the job, and that hiring the foreign worker will not adversely affect similarly employed US workers' wages and working conditions.	The US employer	In most cases, an immigrant petition to USCIS
Labor Condition Application (LCA)	Department of Labor	The employer attests to compliance with the program's requirements, including paying at least the higher of the actual or prevailing wage.	The US employer	The H-1B petition to USCIS
H-1B petition (Form I-129)	USCIS	Decides whether the worker qualifies for temporary specialty-occupation status. The certified LCA is submitted with it.	The US employer	Approval and, for a worker abroad, a visa application
Visa application (DS-160)	State Department	Requests an H-1B visa so the worker can seek admission.	The worker	A consular interview
Appointment and interview	State Department, at a consulate	The consular officer decides the visa application.	The worker books it	Issuance, refusal or administrative processing

The rows come from the Department of Labor's PERM and LCA pages and the USCIS H-1B page.

In what order do these steps happen?

For a temporary H-1B, the order is LCA, then the H-1B petition, then, for a worker outside the United States, the visa application and appointment. For an employer-sponsored green card, the order is usually PERM, then an immigrant petition, then adjustment of status or consular processing. The two sequences are separate and can overlap.

Temporary H-1B, worker outside the United States:

The Department of Labor certifies the employer's LCA.
The employer files Form I-129 with USCIS and submits the certified LCA with it. For petitions covered by Proclamation 11069, the filing includes proof of the $100,000 payment or an exception.
USCIS approves the petition.
The worker files the DS-160, pays the visa application fee and books an interview.
The consular officer decides the visa, and the worker then applies to U.S. Customs and Border Protection for admission.

Employer-sponsored green card, most EB-2 and EB-3 cases:

The employer obtains a prevailing wage determination from the Department of Labor before filing.
The employer completes the recruitment and notice of filing steps that apply to the occupation.
The employer files the PERM application and, in most cases, must obtain a certified labor certification before filing an immigrant petition with USCIS.
USCIS decides the immigrant petition. The worker then completes adjustment of status or consular processing when a visa number is available.

An H-1B worker can have a PERM case in progress at the same time. The two sequences run independently, which is why news about one does not describe the other. The booking guide covers the second half of the H-1B sequence.

Does every employment-based green card route need PERM?

No. Most EB-2 and EB-3 cases start with PERM, but EB-1 categories and EB-2 national interest waivers do not use it. USCIS says no labor certification is required for the multinational manager or executive category, which is the route many L-1A employees consider.

The multinational manager or executive requirements are on the USCIS EB-1 page. Which route fits a person depends on facts WaitDelta cannot assess. L-1 vs H-1B: Eligibility, interviews and PERM are separate explains why L-1 is not an automatic workaround for an employer's PERM restriction.

Which of these steps did the October 8 action affect?

The October 8, 2026 action named PERM. It did not announce a blanket H-1B visa suspension or cancel a consular appointment. Reports differ on whether H-1B petition processing for the eight named employers is also affected, and no official notice had been published by October 9, 2026.

Is H-1B suspended? What the October 8 PERM action changed sets out the scope and the eight named employers. Does the PERM suspension affect H-1B interviews in India? covers a booked interview, a booking you still need and travel.

What does confusing the processes look like?

A worker on an H-1B hears that their employer's PERM filings are suspended while they hold a consular appointment next month. The suspension concerns the employer's green card filings, and the appointment is a State Department booking that the worker's account shows. Checking each record separately avoids treating one as evidence about the other.

This is a hypothetical example, not a real case and not an eligibility outcome.

The employer's PERM case: ask the employer's immigration team, and look for a dated written notice.
The H-1B petition: the approval notice (Form I-797) shows what USCIS approved.
The appointment: the booking account shows the date, the post and the status.

What should you do when a notice mentions one of these processes?

Identify which process the notice names, then follow the matching official source: the Department of Labor's FLAG pages for PERM and LCA, USCIS for petitions, and the State Department for visa applications and appointments. Ask your employer's immigration team which legal entity filed and which stage the case is at.

PERM or LCA: the Department of Labor's PERM page and LCA page.
A petition or approval notice: the USCIS H-1B page.
A visa application or appointment: the State Department's wait times and processing page and your booking account.

WaitDelta is an independent publication and is not affiliated with the U.S. government. This page describes how the processes work. It is not legal advice. For your own case, consult a licensed immigration attorney.

Changes to this page

October 9, 2026. First published. Facts checked against the sources listed below on this date.