Updated
PERM occupation, SOC 31-1122.00, #20 of 1,410 by filings
Personal Care Aides
- Biggest sponsor
- DEVOTED GUARDIANS INC · 9% of its filings
- Busiest state
- WI · 26% of its filings
- Major group
- Healthcare support · SOC 31
Weighing an offer for this job?
Where it falls among certified offers, and the four wage levels DOL sets for it by area.
Median wage
$31,200
all PERM $103,272
Filings
2,630
#20 of 1,410
Approval
93.9%
field 96.8%
Median days
485
8 slower 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
$31,200above 11%
Approval rate
93.9%ahead of 31%
Median days to decision
485 daysahead of 20%
Each bar counts occupations at that value. More
- 5th to 95th
- 25th to 75th
- Median
- 10th and 90th
FY2024
$28,808 median · 193 certified cases
FY2025
$31,200 median · 1,504 certified cases
FY2026
$31,200 median · 686 certified cases
- 10th
- $23,192
- -7.2% since FY2024
- Median
- $31,200
- +8.3% since FY2024
- 90th
- $39,520
- +37.2% since FY2024
- 95th
- $43,680
- +47.4% since FY2024
These years are not measuring the same group of filings. The count moves by 7.8 times between the largest year and the smallest, so a change in the ladder is at least partly a change in which employers filed rather than a change in what the work pays. Read the shape, not the difference.
| Fiscal year | Cases | 5th | 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th | 95th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2024 | 193 | $21,258 | $25,000 | $27,040 | $28,808 | $28,808 | $28,808 | $29,640 |
| FY2025 | 1,504 | $23,566 | $24,960 | $28,366 | $31,200 | $35,360 | $39,520 | $39,520 |
| FY2026 | 686 | $23,000 | $23,192 | $28,496 | $31,200 | $37,440 | $39,520 | $43,680 |
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
- DEVOTED GUARDIANS INC 234 filings · 94.0% approved
- Homes for Independent Living of Wisconsin LLC 206 filings · 100.0% approved
- 1st Senior Cares, LLC 109 filings · 100.0% approved
- Marsh Country Health Alliance 96 filings · 100.0% approved
- RGAC Enterprises, Inc. 84 filings · 100.0% approved
- Paragon Community Services LLC 72 filings · 100.0% approved
How this is counted
The employers with the most applications under this code. 801 of 2,630 filings, 30% of the total.
Firms filing it
- Law Office of Nhu Muon 1,105 filings · 98.9% approved
- NEW ERA GOLDEN CARE 277 filings · 94.5% approved
- American International & Immigration Law, PC 83 filings · 89.0% approved
- Ruby Law Group LLC 83 filings · 100.0% approved
- William Newell Siebert, PC 62 filings · 43.5% approved
- Jackson Lewis PC 55 filings · 100.0% approved
How this is counted
The law firms named on the most applications under this code. 1,665 of 2,630 filings, 63% of the total.
Where the jobs are
- Wisconsin 692
- Arizona 249
- California 211
- Georgia 187
- Minnesota 99
- Indiana 90
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 1,528 of 2,630 filings.
Where the work is
- Tempe, AZ 207
- Oconomowoc, WI 108
- Juneau, WI 96
- Norcross, GA 96
- Green Bay, WI 91
- Peachtree Corners, GA 76
How this is counted
The worksite city on the application, which is where the job is. These 6 cities cover 674 of 2,630 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
- 256 cases
Wisconsin State Journal
- 188 cases
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
- 107 cases
Green Bay Press - Gazette
- 99 cases
The Arizona Republic
- 90 cases
Gwinnett Daily Post
- 86 cases
Los Angeles Daily News
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
- 51 cases
Local or ethnic newspapers
- 51 cases
Radio or TV ads
- 50 cases
Job search websites
- 1 cases
The employer's website
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
- 0.8%
30 to 59 days
- 15%
60 to 89 days
- 12%
90 to 119 days
- 12%
120 to 149 days
- 57%
150 to 180 days
- 2.5%
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.
Who filled these jobs, 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
- Philippines 13
- Dominican Republic 2
- Ghana 1
- Vietnam 1
Worker's education
- None 14
- Bachelor's 2
- High School 1
Visa held when filed
- NOT IN USA 7
- H-1B 2
Schools
- DOMINICAN ADVENTIST UNIVERSITY 2
- METHODIST GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL 1
Fields of study
- BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN NURSING 2
- GENERAL ART 1
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.
- Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZTempe
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GANorcross, Peachtree Corners
- Milwaukee-Waukesha, WIOconomowoc
- South Central Wisconsin nonmetropolitan areaJuneau
- Green Bay, WIGreen Bay
- middle half of pay (BLS)
- median
- 10th to 90th percentile
- DOL's Levels I to IV, left to right
| Area | BLS median | Level I | Level II | Level III | Level IV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ | — | $32,677 | $34,757 | $36,837 | $38,917 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | — | $26,499 | $29,182 | $31,866 | $34,549 |
| Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI | — | $28,246 | $31,699 | $35,152 | $38,605 |
| South Central Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area | — | $30,118 | $32,989 | $35,880 | $38,750 |
| Green Bay, WI | — | $27,893 | $31,242 | $34,611 | $37,960 |
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 Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ, 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 | $32,677 | $34,757 | $36,837 | $38,917 |
| 2025-26 | $31,387 | $33,654 | $35,942 | $38,210 |
| 2024-25 | $30,035 | $31,949 | $33,862 | $35,776 |
| 2023-24 | $28,184 | $29,869 | $31,533 | $33,218 |
| 2022-23 | $27,144 | $28,371 | $29,578 | $30,805 |
What the job is
Provide personalized assistance to individuals with disabilities or illness who require help with personal care and activities of daily living support (e.g., feeding, bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, and ambulation). May also provide help with tasks such as preparing meals, doing light housekeeping, and doing laundry. Work is performed in various settings depending on the needs of the care recipient and may include locations such as their home, place of work, out in the community, or at a daytime nonresidential facility.
- Preparation
- Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
- O*NET Job Zone 1-2
- DOL's education basis
- High school diploma or equivalent
- Wage year 2026-27
Bright Outlook O*NET OnLine lists this job for rapid growth and numerous job openings.
The work, most important first
- Prepare and maintain records of client progress and services performed, reporting changes in client condition to manager or supervisor.
- Administer bedside or personal care, such as ambulation or personal hygiene assistance.
- Perform healthcare-related tasks, such as monitoring vital signs and medication, under the direction of registered nurses or physiotherapists.
- Participate in case reviews, consulting with the team caring for the client, to evaluate the client's needs and plan for continuing services.
- Instruct or advise clients on issues, such as household cleanliness, utilities, hygiene, nutrition, or infant care.
- Care for individuals or families during periods of incapacitation, family disruption, or convalescence, providing companionship, personal care, or help in adjusting to new lifestyles.
The education workers in it report
- 48%
High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED)
- 6%
Post-Secondary Certificate
- 6%
Some College Courses
- 22%
Associate's Degree or other 2-year degree
Titles people use for it
Caregiver, Home Care Aide, Personal Care Aide, Personal Care Attendant (PCA), Care Provider, Direct Care Worker, Medication Aide, Personal Care Assistant (PCA).
Related jobs: Home Health Aides, Nursing Assistants, Child, Family, and School Social Workers, Nannies, Social and Human Service Assistants, Psychiatric Aides.
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 20 of 1,410 by volume: 19 filed at least as many filings, and 1,390 filed no more.
- Just above
- Financial and Investment Analysts 2,800 filings
- Just below
- Packers and Packagers, Hand 2,625 filings
Other healthcare support 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.
The same job on H-1B
10 certified H-1B labor condition applications for this occupation since FY2020, offering a median of $33,100 a year; the middle half ran $27,560 to $38,090. 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 31-1122.00. 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 2,630 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 Personal Care Aides. The measured factors are on the denial risk page, published as separate rates.
- Nothing here is pending
- All 2,630 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 DEVOTED GUARDIANS INC. 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