Here is latest update about Perm from Murthy Bulletin.
PERM Now Expected by End of 2003
For quite some time, one of the most frequent questions asked by clients and immigration practitioners alike has been, "When is PERM going to start?" As regular MurthyDotCom and MurthyBulletin readers know, PERM is a complete revision of the labor certification process. More information about PERM is available in our articles, PERM Projected for July 2003 (Dec 27, 2002) and PERM: Panacea or Problem? (Feb 21, 2003).
In a teleconference between the Department of Labor-Employment and Training Administration (DOL) and the DOL liaison of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), the minutes of which were released in August 2003, the DOL confirmed that PERM regulations, as well as labor certification backlog reduction, are top items on their agenda. They projected that the final PERM regulations would be published in late fall 2003. The implementation of the regulation and the PERM program would then occur at the end of calendar year 2003.
It is difficult to be sure of the timing since, originally, PERM was to have started fall 2002, then in April 2003, and then was postponed to an expected date in August or October 2003, and now by December 2003. This December 2003 timeframe is just a prediction. DOL has indicated that the implementation of PERM will depend upon the funding for labor certification backlog reduction. Additionally, the budget process and timing with respect to funding issues is difficult to predict.
DOL stated that PERM will continue to progress even if the backlog reduction process is stalled. They have a timeline for perfecting the PERM technology and will be beta testing. Details of the timeline were not released. We may be able to obtain some additional insight into this aspect of the process, as they will be requesting assistance in the beta testing. Therefore, there should be some information available once beta testing is imminent.
Although the start date for PERM remains unclear, it does appear that the PERM program is still a priority for DOL. Given that the predictions involve timeframes that are only a few months away, the answer to the question of "when" is hopefully closer. We will continue to inform MurthyDotCom and MurthyBulletin readers of PERM developments as more information becomes available.