The U.S Department of Labor (USDOL) Employment and Training Administration issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would significantly raise the percentile thresholds for determining prevailing wage levels in the permanent labor certification program (PERM) for foreign workers, and the H-1B, H-1B1, and E-3 visa programs for specialty (professional) workers. Under current law, U.S. employers seeking to hire temporary foreign workers through the H-1B specialty occupation petitions, H-1B1 (Chile and Singapore), or E-3 (Australia) visa programs must pay foreign workers the higher of the prevailing wage for the area of intended employment or the actual wage rate paid to similarly qualified U.S. workers in the area of intended employment.
The four-tier Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) wage structure is proposed to increase as follows:
| Wage Level | Current Percentile | Proposed Percentile |
| Level I (Entry) | 17th percentile | 34th percentile |
| Level II (Qualified) | 34th percentile | 52nd percentile |
| Level III (Experienced) | 50th percentile | 70th percentile |
| Level IV (Fully Competent) | 67th percentile | 88th percentile |
Among the USDOL’s stated goals is to “curb abuse of certain visa programs by reducing the incentive to displace American workers with low-wage foreign visa holders.” If finalized, the rule would increase minimum wage requirements for many foreign workers and as a result, substantially increase sponsorship costs for employers. USDOL estimates the average certified wages could increase by about $14,000 per worker per year.
Comments on the NPRM are due by May 26, 2026. The proposed rule would not apply retroactively.
For more information, see the USDOL press release.