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PERM sponsor, #2,485 of 70,985 by filings

First Solar, Inc.

First Solar, Inc. sponsors green cards: it filed 6 PERM cases in the last 12 months, the newest on October 12, 2026. First Solar, Inc. has 5 PERM cases waiting with DOL.

Main job
Solar Energy Systems Engineers · 78% of its filings
Main worksite
Perrysburg, OH · 94% of its filings
Industry
Semiconductor and Related Device Manufacturing · NAICS 334413

Waiting on a case with First Solar, Inc.?

  • When it'll likely be decided
  • An email when DOL moves it

It's on your ETA-9089 receipt. It goes into the page's address, so you can bookmark the result.

Don't have the number? Find it among their filings.

Or follow this employer by email

Too few cases for a rate

16 decided filings: too few for an approval rate.

Why

Across every PERM case DOL decided in this window, 3.20% were denied. At that rate a file this size comes back clean most of the time whatever the sponsor did, so a percentage would be a fact about how few cases there are. Telling a clean record apart from the field takes about 117 decided cases.

Filings

18

#2,485 of 70,985

Certified

16

0 denied

Approval

Not shown

withheld: 16 decided

Median wage

$80,000

offered, per year

Median days

472

6 slower than the field

Right now

DOL's live record of its cases, read every day, and what it has done to them as a group.

In the queue right now 33 cases in the live tracker

Waiting on a decision

5

of 33 tracked cases. The other 28 have been decided.

The oldest one still waiting was filed May 27, 2026, 4 months ago.

Where those 5 are standing

ANALYST REVIEW
5100%

A Department of Labor analyst has the application. This is the main queue, and it is where most pending PERM cases sit.

None of this changes one case's wait: DOL works one national line. Where DOL is working now is the figure that does.

From DOL's live status of 33 of this sponsor's cases: read this share against 33, never against the lifetime filings above. Live case tracker, as of October 19, 2026

Follow First Solar, Inc.

An email when DOL moves its cases as a group: five or more on or off hold in a day, or a batch decided well above its usual pace.

What DOL has done to its cases as a group

Nothing employer-wide since this site's record began on August 27, 2026.

You confirm by email first. One click turns it off.

Its newest filings

Filed since DOL's last quarterly file, so the wage and law firm aren't published yet.

The 8 newest. Every filing by this employer is in the case search, live and published together.

Source: DOL's own case-status service, flag.dol.gov, where any of these numbers can be looked up. A filing shows there soon after it's made, months before DOL's quarterly files.

How long it takes

How long their cases are taking

  1. First Solar, Inc.

    median of 6 decisions in the last 90 days

    337 days

  2. Every employer

    median of 29,126 decisions in the same 90 days

    302 days

35 days longer than everyone's, which usually means audits or requests for information in the mix. Filing to decision, over decisions we watched DOL make; withdrawals left out.

Filed today: a new case joins the same line as anyone's, behind 80,651 cases, and would be decided around March 15, 2027 (between February 23, 2027 and April 24, 2027). Estimate another date

Every program

Across DOL's programs

The wage request, the PERM and the H-1B labor condition application, one line each.

PERM (green card)
18 published
5 pending
$80,000 median, n=18
Prevailing wage requests
21 published
7 pending
$87,256 median, n=21
H-1B labor condition applications
193 published
1 pending
$84,968 median, n=193

Its median H-1B wage is $84,968 across 193 LCAs, 6.2% higher than its median PERM wage of $80,000 across 18 cases. Different forms, different years and different jobs sit behind the two medians, so this is a gap in what was filed, not a finding.

Every case across these programs is in the search.

How these are counted

Medians are of the published rows with a usable wage, annualised from whatever unit the filing quoted, and withheld under 10 wages. DOL publishes no employer number, so filings are matched by the employer's legal name; another employer with the same legal name would be counted here too. The PERM is the green-card step; the wage request comes months before it, and the LCA is the separate form for an H-1B. DOL publishes each in its own file, and its live record shows what is still open.

Its newest wage requests and LCAs

Filed by First Solar, Inc., newest first. Decided ones carry the wage from DOL's quarterly files.

Wage requests

All wage requests by this employer

H-1B LCAs

All H-1B LCAs by this employer

Source: DOL's own case-status service, flag.dol.gov, where any of these numbers can be looked up. A filing shows there soon after it's made, months before DOL's quarterly files.

What its H-1B LCAs were for

From DOL's quarterly LCA files: 193 LCAs filed by First Solar, Inc., 188 of them certified with the worker breakdown on Form ETA-9035.

New hires and transfers

111 positions for new employment, 26 moving here from another employer.

  • New employment 7a 111 · 59%
  • Change of employer 7e 26 · 14%
  • Continuing 7b 14 · 7%
  • Change in previous employment 7c 16 · 9%
  • Concurrent employment 7d 0 · 0%
  • Amended petition 7f 21 · 11%

Shares of the 188 worker positions requested. These are positions on certified LCAs, not people hired: DOL certifies an LCA before any petition, and many are never used.

What each box on the form means
  • New employment (7a). Starting with a new employer.
  • Change of employer (7e). Moving here from another employer, keeping the visa classification already held.
  • Continuing (7b). Staying with the same employer.
  • Change in previous employment (7c). Same employer, no material change to the job duties.
  • Concurrent employment (7d). Adding this employer while keeping another.
  • Amended petition (7f). Same employer, with a material change to the job duties.

Form ETA-9035, Section B, Item 7, in DOL's words from its LCA record layout. One LCA can tick several boxes.

Wage level it chose

  • Level I 66 · 36%
  • Level II 36 · 20%
  • Level III 34 · 19%
  • Level IV 46 · 25%

Shares of the 182 certified LCAs that named an OES level. The form asks for the level only when the employer set the wage from the OES survey itself; 6 of 188 used another source, such as a DOL wage determination or another survey. Level I is entry, Level IV fully competent.

What it declared on Section H

H-1B-dependent
No
Found a willful violator
No

As answered on its newest LCA, filed June 22, 2026. Declared H-1B-dependent on 0 of 184 LCAs, and a willful violator on 0 of 187. Both are the employer's own answers.

What the two answers mean

H-1B-dependent (20 CFR 655.736(a)): 25 or fewer full-time-equivalent employees in the US and more than 7 H-1B workers; 26 to 50 and more than 12; or 51 or more, with H-1B workers equal to at least 15% of them.

Willful violator (655.736(f)): DOL or the Justice Department found a willful failure or a misrepresentation of a material fact in the five years before the LCA was filed.

Either one adds two promises to the employer's LCAs: not to displace US workers, and to recruit US workers before hiring H-1B workers (655.738, 655.739). They don't apply to an LCA used only for exempt workers, paid at least $60,000 a year or holding a related master's degree (655.737). The rule on eCFR

Visas these LCAs support: H-1B 187 · E-3 (Australia) 1 · H-1B1 (Chile) 3 · H-1B1 (Singapore) 2. E-3 and H-1B1 use the same LCA as the H-1B.

Against other sponsors

Where it sits among 70,985 sponsors. The full ranking sorts every column.

Each figure ranked only among sponsors with enough cases for it to mean something. No single score: they measure different things.

  • PERM filings in the last 12 months

    6 filed in the last 12 months

    Higher than 83% of the 13,949 sponsors that filed in the last 12 months.

  • H-1B LCAs certified in the last 24 months

    95 certified in the last 24 months

    Higher than 97% of the 27,903 sponsors with a certified LCA in the last 24 months.

  • Share of H-1B positions that were transfers

    12% of 104 certified H-1B positions, LCAs decided Jun 2024 to Jun 2026

    Higher than 42% of the 5,558 sponsors with 20 or more certified positions.

  • Share of H-1B LCAs at wage level III or IV

    40% of 101 certified LCAs with a level, LCAs decided Jun 2024 to Jun 2026

    Higher than 56% of the 5,177 sponsors with 20 or more leveled LCAs.

  • USCIS H-1B approval rate, last 3 fiscal years

    98.1% of 104 USCIS decisions

    Higher than 43% of the 5,810 sponsors with 20 or more USCIS decisions.

Position in the field 1,343 sponsors with 30+ decided

Approval rate

not shownunder 30 decided

0% 100%

Median days to decision

472 daysmiddle of 16 decided, too few to rank

5d 1152d
Each bar counts sponsors at that value. More
Each bar counts sponsors at that value. Sponsors with fewer than 30 decided cases are left out of the population rather than plotted, because a rate over a handful of cases lands wherever the handful landed. This sponsor has 16 decided cases, so its median days is marked but left unranked, and no approval rate is drawn at all.
DOL PERM disclosure files

Against the sponsors ranked nearest

The 120 sponsors ranked nearest filed between 18 and 19 filings.

Their median wait
472 days
This one
472 days

Exactly where this one sits.

Why no approval rate

A band is a slice of the volume ranking rather than a population picked for having enough decided cases, so a band rate would be solid at the top of the list and noise at the bottom, under one heading.

Where this sits in the ranking

Ranked 2,485 of 70,985 by volume: 2,484 filed at least as many filings, and 68,500 filed no more.

Just above
RxAdvance Corporation 18 filings
Just below
IT KeySource,Inc 18 filings

Sponsors filing at the same rate

Ranked either side of this one: they file about as many PERM cases.

Sponsors hiring for the same work

The employers filing the most PERM cases for Solar Energy Systems Engineers, the occupation this sponsor files for most.

What they file, and where

A rank says how much. It says nothing about what the work is, which is the part a job offer from this sponsor turns on.

What the jobs are

Solar Energy Systems Engineers

SOC 17-2199.11 · 14 filings, 78% of everything they file

How this is counted

These are the 3 occupations with the most filings, 16 of 18 cases between them. The occupation on a PERM is the SOC code on the form, which is the job as DOL classifies it rather than the job title on the offer. DOL still accepts two SOC vintages, so one job can appear twice under two codes; the code is printed for exactly that reason.

The industry they declared

Semiconductor and Related Device Manufacturing

NAICS 334413 · 17 filings

  • Industrial and Commercial Fan and Blower and Air Purification Equipment Manufacturing 3334131
How this is counted

The NAICS code the employer entered on the form, with the Census Bureau's title for it. DOL publishes the code alone, and an employer can file under more than one.

Where the jobs are

  • Ohio 18
How this is counted

The worksite state on the application, which is where the job is and not where the company is headquartered. Volume by state across everyone is on the state map. This state covers 18 of 18 filings.

Where the work is

  • Perrysburg, OH 17
  • Walbridge, OH 1
How this is counted

The worksite city on the application, which is where the job is. These 2 cities cover 18 of 18 filings.

Who files for them

  1. Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy, LLP 18 filings
How this is counted

The law firm named on the application. 18 of 18 filings, 100% of the total.

Newspapers it advertised in

  1. The Blade

    17 cases

  2. Toledo Blade

    1 cases
How this is counted

The newspaper or professional journal named for each case's two print ads, one count per paper per case, however the filer spelled it.

Additional steps it used

  1. Job search websites

    18 cases

  2. Local or ethnic newspapers

    18 cases

  3. Radio or TV ads

    18 cases
How this is counted

The steps a professional job needs beyond the job order and the ads, by the number of cases that name each.

How long before filing it began

  1. Under 30 days

    0.0%

  2. 30 to 59 days

    0.0%

  3. 60 to 89 days

    0.0%

  4. 90 to 119 days

    0.0%

  5. 120 to 149 days

    28%

  6. 150 to 180 days

    72%

  7. Over 180 days

    0.0%
How this is counted

Days from the first recruitment step to the filing. 20 C.F.R. § 656.17(e) puts the job order and ads 30 to 180 days before filing.

Where every PERM employer recruits

History

Year by year since 2008

56 PERM decisions from FY2008 to FY2026, busiest in FY2025 with 13.

  • certified
  • denied
  • withdrawn

Fiscal years, October to September. A year filed under another name is missing, not zero. FY2026 is partial: DOL's newest file runs through June 2026.

Every year as a table
Fiscal year Certified Denied Withdrawn
FY2008 1 0 0
FY2009 0 0 0
FY2010 2 0 0
FY2011 4 0 0
FY2012 6 0 0
FY2013 3 0 0
FY2014 1 0 2
FY2015 3 0 0
FY2016 4 0 0
FY2017 2 0 0
FY2018 0 0 0
FY2019 1 0 0
FY2020 2 0 0
FY2021 4 0 0
FY2022 3 0 0
FY2023 0 0 0
FY2024 0 0 2
FY2025 13 0 0
FY2026 3 0 0

Decided in FY2016 to FY2023

All 16. Case numbers from these years start with A-; look one up for DOL's full record.

Case Decided Outcome Job Offered wage
A-21232-34197 2022-04-19 certified IT Analyst, OH $97,698
A-20324-23212 2022-03-22 certified Manager - Consolidations, AZ $88,192
A-21144-90902 2021-12-17 certified Development Engineer, OH $65,208
A-21028-46879 2021-08-02 certified Tax Analyst - International, AR $57,450
A-20209-81137 2021-04-12 certified Financial Analyst, OH $77,875
A-20205-79948 2021-04-06 certified Administrator - Systems, OH $91,021
A-20136-54917 2020-12-14 certified IT Analyst, OH $91,021
A-20045-19459 2020-06-12 certified IT Analyst, OH $91,021
The other 8
A-19210-36559 2019-12-16 certified Software Engineer - MES, OH $98,051
A-18242-13023 2019-04-02 certified Reliability Engineer, OH $67,309
A-17089-18965 2017-09-13 certified Performance Engineer, AZ $88,941
A-16092-91935 2016-10-31 certified Buyer, AZ $57,500
A-16034-68772 2016-07-08 certified Engineer – R&D Crystalline Silicon (Wet Process), CA $109,366
A-16011-59365 2016-05-27 certified Engineer, Manufacturing, OH $87,547
A-15352-52478 2016-05-23 certified Director, Integration - Global Manufacturing Engineering, OH $131,622
A-15303-34187 2016-04-07 certified Developer, AZ $106,912

Who they sponsored, FY2016 to FY2023

From DOL's old form; the form in use since mid-2023 doesn't carry them. Top six of each.

Country of citizenship

  • India 9
  • Malaysia 3
  • China 2
  • Pakistan 1
  • Philippines 1

Worker's education

  • Master's 8
  • Bachelor's 6
  • Doctorate 1
  • Other 1

Visa held when filed

  • H-1B 13
  • L-1 3

Schools

  • ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY 3
  • ANDHRA UNIVERSITY 1
  • BHARATHIDASAN UNIVERSITY 1
  • BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY HAWAII 1
  • CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY 1
  • JAWAHARLAL NEHRU TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY 1

Fields of study

  • COMPUTER SCIENCE 2
  • ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING 2
  • INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 2
  • ACCOUNTING 1
  • BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION 1
  • BUSINESS MANAGEMENT FINANCE 1

Notes on these numbers

What these numbers don't say

5 notes
The wage is the job, not the payer
Their filings are led by Solar Energy Systems Engineers, 14 of 18. The median offered wage moves almost entirely with what roles they file. A software developer and a poultry cutter are different numbers wherever they are filed, so this figure is not plotted against the field and no percentile is given for it: that comparison would rank occupation mix and call it pay. Wages by occupation are on the wages page.
Volume doesn’t change the wait
DOL works a single national queue, oldest first, whoever filed the case, so these 18 filings bought no priority: a company with four thousand waits exactly as long as one with three.
The name is a legal entity
DOL prints whatever went on the form, and here that name ranks 2,485. A group that files through several subsidiaries appears as several rows, and one that files everything through a parent appears once, so a rank is a rank among printed names rather than among companies.
A median over 16 decided cases
The queue is national and first in, first out, so this figure follows when the cases were filed as much as it follows the sponsor.
Two sources, and they do not add up
The filing counts come from DOL's disclosure files, where every row already carries a decision date, so nothing pending is in them. The queue figures come from a live per-case tracker with its own coverage and its own as-of date. Subtracting one from the other gives a number that means nothing. The worksite on most of these is OH. Where the queue stands overall is on the processing times page.

The window these figures cover: DOL's PERM disclosure files for fiscal years 2024 to 2026, through the third quarter of 2026, 373,939 decided cases. Nothing pending is counted here. How each figure is built

Case data: DOL quarterly disclosure files (flag.dol.gov) · data through Jun 30, 2026 · quarterly

Employers and firms: Derived from DOL's disclosure files · data through Jun 30, 2026 · rebuilt with each quarterly load

Per-case statuses: flag.dol.gov/recaptcha/caseStatus (DOL, direct) · data through Oct 19, 2026 · daily

What each source includes

Case data: Decided PERM cases only. A case still waiting isn't in here, so counts and durations describe finished cases.

Employers and firms: Employers, law firms and occupations ranked from decided cases only.

Per-case statuses: Every PERM case DOL indexes, pending included. No wage, law firm or worksite: DOL reveals those only when a case is published.

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