How to read LCA disclosure data: field meanings and caveats

What is in the file

OFLC publishes the LCA disclosure data as a spreadsheet, cumulative for the fiscal year, with each quarterly release: administrative data from employers' Labor Condition Applications (Form ETA-9035), as provided by the employer or its representative, and the final determinations OFLC issued in the reporting period. The latest file we used, FY2026 Q3, covers determinations issued from October 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026. OFLC notes that a small percentage of determinations may change in later quarterly releases because of appeal or redetermination decisions.

On the application the employer attests that, for the whole period of employment, it will pay at least the required wage: the higher of the actual wage it pays similarly qualified workers and the prevailing wage (20 CFR 655.731(a)). The file records what the employer stated. It does not record whether that wage was later paid.

The fields that matter for wages

Fields in the OFLC LCA disclosure file and how Filed Wages uses them
Field	What the OFLC record layout says	How it is used here
`CASE_STATUS`	Status associated with the last significant event or decision: Certified, Certified-Withdrawn, Denied or Withdrawn.	Only Certified is counted.
`VISA_CLASS`	The type of temporary application: H-1B, E-3 Australian, H-1B1 Chile or H-1B1 Singapore.	All three programs share one file and are pooled.
`SOC_CODE`	Occupational code for the job under the Standard Occupational Classification.	Joins a filing to the OEWS wage for the same occupation.
`EMPLOYER_NAME`	Legal business name of the employer submitting the application.	Spellings vary, so employers are matched to one record.
`TOTAL_WORKER_POSITIONS`	Total number of foreign workers requested by the employer.	Percentiles count each filing once, not each position.
`WAGE_RATE_OF_PAY_FROM`	Wage paid to nonimmigrant workers at the first worksite location (Form ETA-9035 Section F.a, Items 10 and 10a, with the TO and UNIT fields).	The bottom of the offered range: the number this site uses.
`WAGE_RATE_OF_PAY_TO`	Part of the same wage item; holds the top of the wage when the employer states a range.	Not used for percentiles.
`WAGE_UNIT_OF_PAY`	Unit of pay: Hour, Week, Bi-Weekly, Month or Year.	Converted to a yearly figure; see the methodology.
`PREVAILING_WAGE`	Prevailing wage for the job being requested for the first worksite location.	The wage floor the employer says applies, not the offer.
`PW_WAGE_LEVEL`	OES wage level, if the employer independently determined the OES wage for the first worksite: I, II, III, IV or N/A.	Source of the level mix on each page.
`PW_OES_YEAR`	The year of the OES prevailing wage, if the employer independently determined the OES wage.	Tells you which wage year the level comes from.
`WORKSITE_CITY, WORKSITE_STATE`	Geographic information for the first worksite location.	Used to match the OEWS metro or state wage.

The caveat that matters most

The wage on a filing is the wage the employer entered for the first worksite, and where a range is stated the number used here is its bottom (WAGE_RATE_OF_PAY_FROM). Medians built from it can sit below OEWS for the same job and area: across the United States the median filing was 0.98 times its own OEWS median, and the ratio varies by group. That is why every page here calls them filed wages and compares them with OEWS rather than calling them salaries. More on that gap in LCA filed wages versus OEWS.

What this site does to the file

It keeps certified cases with a usable wage, converts every wage to a yearly figure, drops likely entry errors, matches each filing to the OEWS wage for its occupation and place, and publishes percentiles only for groups of at least 5 filings. The steps are listed on the methodology page. The raw rows are not republished and no preparer or contact fields are read.

Questions

Does a certified LCA mean the worker was hired?

No. Certification means DOL certified the application. It does not show that a petition was filed or approved, that anyone was hired, or that anyone was paid that amount.

Why does a filing show only one worksite?

The wage fields in the main public file describe the first worksite location. OFLC publishes additional worksites in a separate LCA worksites file with its own record layout.

Is the wage what the worker is paid?

Not necessarily. It is the wage the employer entered on the form, in the unit it chose. Under 20 CFR 655.731 the employer attests it will pay at least the higher of the actual wage and the prevailing wage; what a worker is actually paid is not in this file and can differ.