Updated
PERM occupation, SOC 15-1232.00, #154 of 1,410 by filings
Computer User Support Specialists
- Biggest sponsor
- Informatica LLC · 3% of its filings
- Busiest state
- CA · 27% of its filings
- Major group
- Computer and mathematical · SOC 15
Weighing an offer for this job?
Where it falls among certified offers, and the four wage levels DOL sets for it by area.
This rate is level with the field
Over 303 decided filings, this rate can't be told apart from the field in either direction.
Why
The 95% interval runs up to a 5.5% denial rate, which still covers the 3.20% the field as a whole records.
Median wage
$73,466
all PERM $103,272
Filings
315
#154 of 1,410
Approval
97.0%
field 96.8%
Median days
475
2 faster than the field
What it pays
Where its median offer sits among every occupation, then the whole ladder of certified offers by year and by state.
Median offered wage
$73,466above 54%
Approval rate
97.0%ahead of 55%
Median days to decision
475 daysahead of 55%
Each bar counts occupations at that value. More
- 5th to 95th
- 25th to 75th
- Median
- 10th and 90th
FY2025
$76,066 median · 152 certified cases
FY2026
$71,594 median · 94 certified cases
- 10th
- $52,236
- -3.5% since FY2025
- Median
- $71,594
- -5.9% since FY2025
- 90th
- $127,823
- -6.4% since FY2025
- 95th
- $140,427
- +0.1% since FY2025
Each row is that fiscal year's certified filings, counted on their own. A percentile is over the year, so a year with far fewer cases behind it is a thinner measurement than one with more.
| Fiscal year | Cases | 5th | 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th | 95th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | 152 | $50,379 | $54,142 | $60,949 | $76,066 | $108,708 | $136,561 | $140,270 |
| FY2026 | 94 | $48,828 | $52,236 | $60,466 | $71,594 | $102,119 | $127,823 | $140,427 |
A median answers whether pay moved. More
Who files it
The sponsors and firms with the most PERM filings under this code, the places the work sits, and who the workers were.
Sponsors filing it
- Informatica LLC 10 filings
- ServiceNow, Inc. 9 filings
- Oracle America, Inc. 8 filings
- Palo Alto Networks, Inc. 7 filings
- Snowflake Inc. 7 filings
- Edifecs, Inc. 6 filings
How this is counted
The employers with the most applications under this code. 47 of 315 filings, 15% of the total.
Firms filing it
- FRAGOMEN, DEL REY, BERNSEN & LOEWY, LLP 61 filings · 98.3% approved
- Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP 18 filings
- Sturman & Associates 8 filings
- Corporate Immigration Partners, P.C. 7 filings
- Law Office of Rachel Han Huneryager, PLLC 6 filings
- Goeschl Law Corporation 5 filings
How this is counted
The law firms named on the most applications under this code. 105 of 315 filings, 33% of the total.
Where the jobs are
- California 84
- Florida 50
- Texas 44
- New York 24
- Massachusetts 16
- Georgia 13
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. These 6 states cover 231 of 315 filings.
Where the work is
- Austin, TX 15
- New York, NY 12
- Santa Clara, CA 12
- Orlando, FL 11
- Atlanta, GA 10
- Los Angeles, CA 9
How this is counted
The worksite city on the application, which is where the job is. These 6 cities cover 69 of 315 filings.
- Every sponsor that files it, by state, approval rate, offered wage and time to a decision
- Every filing for it, PERM, wage requests and H-1B, case by case
Newspapers it advertised in
- 21 cases
The Mercury News
- 15 cases
Sun-Sentinel
- 14 cases
Austin American-Statesman
- 14 cases
The Dallas Morning News
- 14 cases
Orlando Sentinel
- 14 cases
San Francisco Chronicle
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
- 155 cases
Job search websites
- 128 cases
Local or ethnic newspapers
- 69 cases
Trade or professional organizations
- 49 cases
The employer's website
- 38 cases
Radio or TV ads
- 32 cases
Employee referral programs
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
- 0.0%
Under 30 days
- 0.0%
30 to 59 days
- 32%
60 to 89 days
- 27%
90 to 119 days
- 15%
120 to 149 days
- 25%
150 to 180 days
- 1.1%
Over 180 days
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.
The job itself
What O*NET says the work is, what the market pays it by BLS's survey, its outlook, and DOL's wage levels year by year.
- United States717,190 jobs
- Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TXAustin
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJNew York
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CASanta Clara
- Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FLOrlando
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAAtlanta
- middle half of pay (BLS)
- median
- 10th to 90th percentile
- DOL's Levels I to IV, left to right
- median PERM offer
| Area | BLS median | Level I | Level II | Level III | Level IV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $61,860 | ||||
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX | $61,990 | $43,555 | $54,746 | $65,957 | $77,147 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $75,690 | $52,416 | $65,541 | $78,666 | $91,790 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $93,590 | $64,272 | $79,934 | $95,576 | $111,238 |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | $54,430 | $41,413 | $50,898 | $60,362 | $69,846 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | $62,110 | $44,179 | $56,805 | $69,430 | $82,056 |
How these figures fit together
BLS surveys employers on what they pay everyone in a job; DOL builds its four levels from the same survey a year later (the July 2026 wage year uses BLS's May 2025 estimates). DOL publishes levels by area, not nationally, so the United States line has none. Levels are hourly in DOL's tables; here they're shown a year at 2,080 hours, as DOL computes them. The metros are the ones holding the most of this job's PERM filings, placed by Census's county files.
The block is the middle half of what employers report paying everyone in this job, citizen or not; the ticks under it are DOL's four prevailing wage levels for that metro, the floors a PERM or H-1B offer is held to. More
DOL's levels for this job in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, year by year
Each July DOL resets the four levels from BLS's newest survey. A determination keeps the figures of the year it was issued in.
| Wage year | Level I | Level II | Level III | Level IV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | $43,555 | $54,746 | $65,957 | $77,147 |
| 2025-26 | $40,123 | $50,648 | $61,194 | $71,718 |
| 2024-25 | $39,208 | $49,234 | $59,259 | $69,285 |
| 2023-24 | $41,787 | $50,690 | $59,571 | $68,474 |
| 2022-23 | $37,336 | $46,634 | $55,952 | $65,250 |
What the job is
Provide technical assistance to computer users. Answer questions or resolve computer problems for clients in person, via telephone, or electronically. May provide assistance concerning the use of computer hardware and software, including printing, installation, word processing, electronic mail, and operating systems.
- Preparation
- Medium Preparation Needed
- O*NET Job Zone 3
- DOL's education basis
- High school diploma or equivalent
- Wage year 2026-27
- Jobs, 2025 to 2035
- -3.5%
- About 39,700 openings a year (BLS)
- Typical entry
- Some college, no degree
- BLS
The work, most important first
- Oversee the daily performance of computer systems.
- Set up equipment for employee use, performing or ensuring proper installation of cables, operating systems, or appropriate software.
- Read technical manuals, confer with users, or conduct computer diagnostics to investigate and resolve problems or to provide technical assistance and support.
- Answer user inquiries regarding computer software or hardware operation to resolve problems.
- Install and perform minor repairs to hardware, software, or peripheral equipment, following design or installation specifications.
- Confer with staff, users, and management to establish requirements for new systems or modifications.
The education workers in it report
- 14%
Associate's Degree or other 2-year degree
Titles people use for it
Computer Support Specialist, Computer Tech (Computer Technician), IS Tech (Information Systems Technician), IT Specialist (Information Technology Specialist), Desktop Support Technician (Desktop Support Tech), Help Desk Analyst, Help Desk Tech (Help Desk Technician), IT Support Specialist (Information Technology Support Specialist).
Related jobs: Computer Network Support Specialists, Network and Computer Systems Administrators, Computer Systems Engineers/Architects, Computer Systems Analysts, Software Developers, Database Administrators.
This section includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database and O*NET OnLine by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. PERM Tracker has modified some of this information (the shares are rounded and only the top tasks are shown); what changed. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.
Against other jobs
Where this sits in the ranking
Ranked 154 of 1,410 by volume: 153 filed at least as many filings, and 1,256 filed no more.
- Just above
- Public Relations Specialists 316 filings
- Just below
- Mathematical Science Teachers, Postsecondary 309 filings
Other computer and mathematical roles
Occupations sharing this one's SOC major group, which is carried in the first two digits of the code. More
Occupations sharing this one's SOC major group, which is carried in the first two digits of the code. Wages inside a group still swing hard, because the group holds every seniority level and every metro.
- #156 Biostatisticians 308 filings · 2 denied
- #161 Computer Network Support Specialists 295 filings · 4 denied
- #137 N/A 382 filings · 5 denied
- #131 Clinical Data Managers 399 filings · 4 denied
- #177 Actuaries 251 filings · 2 denied
- #122 Computer and Information Research Scientists 423 filings · none denied
The same job on H-1B
566 certified H-1B labor condition applications for this occupation since FY2020, offering a median of $80,000 a year; the middle half ran $60,475 to $103,606. By state and year in the salary explorer.
Notes on these numbers
Reading the wage
A floor, not a salary survey: every level and metro mixed. DOL's four wage levels for this job, by area.
What the median is
The median wage employers committed to in federal filings for this occupation. It mixes every experience level and every metro, and it's a floor: the employer must offer at least the prevailing wage DOL determines for the occupation, level and county. Across all PERM filings the middle half of offered wages runs $45,178 to $141,357, so a figure inside that band is unremarkable whichever occupation it belongs to. The levels page reads DOL's OFLC wage search live.
What these numbers don't say
4 notes
- The code is the identity
- This one is SOC 15-1232.00. Two SOC codes can carry the same job title, so a title that looks duplicated on the ranking is two different occupations. Match on the code when you're checking a specific filing.
- A median isn’t an offer
- It's the middle of all 315 wages committed to for this occupation across the country, entry level and principal alike. The same role's medians swing hard by worksite, which the state map shows directly.
- Approval isn’t about the occupation
- The denial rate moves with what happened in the filing rather than with the job title, so nothing here is a property of Computer User Support Specialists. The measured factors are on the denial risk page, published as separate rates.
- Nothing here is pending
- All 315 counted here carry a decision date, because every case in DOL's disclosure files does, so a case still waiting is in none of them. The largest filer of this occupation is Informatica LLC. Where the queue stands today 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
Weighing an offer?
Compare it against this median, then check the state map, where the same occupation's medians swing hard by worksite.
Setting one?
All 1,410 occupations sort together on the wages page, and denial rates show how outcome moves with the offered wage.
Filings newer than DOL's last published file can't be attributed to this occupation until DOL publishes them. The live list on the case search page carries them by employer.
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
O*NET occupation data: O*NET Database, USDOL/ETA (onetcenter.org) · data through Aug 16, 2026 · twice a year
BLS market pay: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (bls.gov) · data through May 31, 2025 · yearly, each spring
BLS employment projections: BLS Employment Projections (bls.gov) · data through Dec 31, 2025 · yearly, each autumn
DOL wage tables: DOL OFLC wage data downloads (flag.dol.gov) · data through Jul 1, 2026 · yearly, each july
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.
O*NET occupation data: What O*NET says each occupation is and takes: its description, tasks, Job Zone and the education workers report. A description of the job everywhere, not of any one employer's opening.
BLS market pay: What employers report paying everyone in each job, nationally, by state and by metro, from BLS's yearly survey (May of the year named). Citizens and immigrants alike; not PERM offers.
BLS employment projections: BLS's ten-year projection of each job's employment and yearly openings, and the entry education it calls typical. A projection, not a count.
DOL wage tables: The four prevailing wage levels DOL publishes for every job in every area, each wage year from 2021-22, as DOL's own tables print them. The floors an offer is held to, not what anyone was paid.
Cite this page
Waiting on a PERM case?
- When it'll likely be decided
- An email when DOL moves it