The U.S. Department of Labor’s Permanent Labor Certification (PERM) program is a required step in many employer-sponsored green card cases. It ensures that no qualified U.S. worker is available for a specific position before an employer can sponsor a foreign national for permanent residence.
2025 Update: Processing Resumes After Government Shutdown
In October 2025, the Department of Labor announced the resumption of PERM processing through the Foreign Labor Application Gateway (FLAG) system following a temporary suspension due to a federal government shutdown. In its October 31, 2025 notice, the Department confirmed that all FLAG system functions had been restored.
The Department also granted automatic filing extensions for employers whose recruitment or prevailing wage periods expired during the suspension. This was a critical measure because it meant employers didn’t lose their place in line simply because the system went offline.
Understanding FLAG: The 2023 Modernization
The significance of this 2025 resumption becomes clearer when you understand what FLAG is. The PERM program currently operates through the Foreign Labor Application Gateway, a platform introduced in 2023 as part of a significant system modernization. This context matters because it shows that when the government shutdown occurred, it didn’t just delay case processing. It tested a relatively new infrastructure that employers had only recently adapted to.
The 2023 modernization introduced several structural improvements designed to streamline PERM management:
In 2023, the Department of Labor introduced a revised Form ETA-9089 and migrated all PERM submissions to FLAG, replacing the older online filing system. This modernization included several structural improvements:
- Integration of Form ETA-9089 with Form ETA-9141 (Prevailing Wage Determination), allowing automatic data transfer between forms
- New fields requiring employers to report employee count at the job location and disclose dual representation arrangements
- Expanded questions addressing worksite nature and familial relationships between the employer and the sponsored worker
- A new appendix requiring business necessity justifications for foreign language requirements or combined occupations
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