United States | RFEs may be required for professional athletes if PLCs or I-140 filings do not contain minimum requirements

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services provided clarification on certain documentation needed for permanent labor certification–based immigrant petitions for professional athletes following the Department of Labor’s (DOL) adoption of the Foreign Labor Application Gateway (FLAG) system.

Key Points:

• USCIS issued a policy alert on Dec. 18 regarding the update of Volume 6 of the USCIS Policy Manual to address how the DOL’s FLAG system affects certain immigrant visa petitions (e.g., permanent labor certifications or PLCs) filed on behalf of professional athletes.
• The clarifications address:
  • An overview of the DOL FLAG system describing the new labor certification–related documentation that must be submitted with Form I-140
  • That DOL regulations exempt professional athletes from the prevailing wage determination requirements
  • How labor certifications that are filed using the FLAG system no longer contain the minimum job requirements for the offered position, as that information is contained in the prevailing wage determination
  • That if an immigrant petition for a professional athlete contains a labor certification obtained through the FLAG system, USCIS may issue a request for evidence to obtain the minimum job requirements if that information is not contained in the labor certification or supporting documentation submitted with the Form I-140

Additional Information: USCIS receives fewer than 100 labor certifications for professional athletes each year, but the clarification affects all major U.S. professional sports teams and their minor league affiliates. Additional Form I-140 requirements and a FLAG system overview can be found in the Policy Manual update.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

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