25 EB-2 PERM Statistics Every Applicant Should Know in 2026

What the Latest EB-2 PERM Data Shows in 2026

The EB-2 Green Card is the employment-based second preference, for professionals with an advanced degree or people of exceptional ability. It has two routes: the employer-sponsored PERM route, which requires a Department of Labor labor certification, and the National Interest Waiver, which lets an applicant self-petition without one. This page covers the PERM route. Two things drive it: the PERM labor certification at the front of the process, which is high-volume and runs over a year, and the EB-2 visa cutoff at the back, which both EB-2 PERM and EB-2 NIW applicants share. The figures below come from the government bodies that publish them: the Department of Labor, USCIS, the State Department, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Congressional Research Service.

PERM Labor Certification Statistics

PERM (Form ETA-9089) is the labor-market test an employer must clear before filing an EB-2 PERM (or EB-3) petition. The Department of Labor's figures below cover all PERM cases and are not split by EB-2 versus EB-3.

1. The Department of Labor received 117,849 PERM applications in FY 2025. That was down about 22% from the 151,773 filed in FY 2024, per DOL Office of Foreign Labor Certification data.
2. DOL certified 138,093 PERM applications and denied 3,404 in FY 2025. Another 6,730 were withdrawn, for 148,227 cases processed; the agency decides far more cases than it denies.
3. 157,669 PERM applications were still awaiting processing as of September 30, 2025. That pending inventory was down from 183,776 a year earlier, but it remains a large queue at the front of every labor-certification-based case.
4. Employers filed 180,806 PERM-related prevailing wage requests in FY 2025. The prevailing wage determination is a required step before recruitment and the PERM filing itself, per DOL data.
5. Software developers were 22.7% of all PERM certifications in FY 2025. With 31,415 certifications, software developers were by far the largest occupation, followed by computer systems analysts (6,345) and data scientists (4,366), per DOL.
6. California and Texas led PERM certifications by state in FY 2025. California accounted for 24,409 certifications (17.7%) and Texas 14,138 (10.2%), reflecting where employer-sponsored talent demand concentrates, per DOL.

EB-2 Processing Time Statistics

1. PERM analyst review averaged 501 calendar days, about 16.5 months, as of the DOL's March 2026 data. The Department of Labor's FLAG dashboard posts this figure. See Manifest's PERM processing times tracker for the current number.
2. When the Department of Labor audits a PERM case, it moves into a separate review queue. That audit queue averaged 343 calendar days as of March 2026; the audit and analyst-review averages describe two separate groups of cases rather than one added on top of the other.
3. Premium processing commits USCIS to act on an EB-2 PERM I-140 within 15 business days. For an additional fee, USCIS guarantees an adjudicative action, meaning an approval, denial, or request for evidence, within 15 business days for an EB-2 PERM petition, versus 45 business days for EB-1C and EB-2 NIW. It changes only the I-140 timeline, not whether a visa number is available.

EB-2 Green Card Issuance Statistics

EB-2 visa numbers are shared by the PERM and NIW routes, so these category totals count both.

1. 46,580 people obtained EB-2 Green Cards in FY 2024. The Department of Homeland Security's Yearbook counts this across the advanced-degree and exceptional-ability second preference, covering both the PERM and NIW routes.
2. About 78% of EB-2 recipients adjusted status from inside the U.S. in FY 2024. Of the 46,580 total, 36,260 adjusted status through USCIS while in the country and 10,330 entered as new arrivals on an immigrant visa, per DHS.
3. 10,255 EB-2 immigrant visas were issued at U.S. consulates abroad in FY 2024. The State Department's Report of the Visa Office records this consular total, which is separate from the much larger adjustment-of-status channel inside the country.
4. EB-2 was about 27% of all employment-based Green Cards in FY 2023. The 46,580 EB-2 total sat within 171,120 employment-based Green Cards granted across all categories that year, per DHS.

EB-2 Allocation and Demand Statistics

1. EB-2 receives 28.6% of the worldwide employment-based limit, about 40,000 visas in a typical year. The 28.6% share is fixed by statute under INA 203(b)(2), plus any numbers unused by the first preference; the actual count floats with the roughly 140,000 worldwide limit.
2. EB-2 has no 10,000 "Other Workers" sub-cap. That carve-out applies only to EB-3, so the entire EB-2 allocation is available to advanced-degree and exceptional-ability applicants, subject to the per-country limit.
3. The 7% per-country ceiling capped each country at 25,620 preference visas for FY 2026. Set by INA 202, it applies across the combined family and employment preference system and is what pushes high-demand countries into backlogs.
4. The FY 2025 EB-2 worldwide limit was reached on Sept. 2, 2025. The State Department announced it had issued all available EB-2 visas for the fiscal year before the year ended on September 30.

EB-2 Priority Date and Backlog Statistics

1. India's EB-2 final action date was Sept. 1, 2013 in the June 2026 visa bulletin. That places the cutoff more than 12 years behind the filing date for India-born applicants.
2. India's EB-2 cutoff retrogressed about 10 months in June 2026. The date moved backward from July 15, 2014 in May 2026 to Sept. 1, 2013, after the State Department reported the India per-country limit reached on May 22, 2026.
3. China's EB-2 final action date was Sept. 1, 2021 in June 2026, while most other countries were current. China held steady that month, though the State Department warned its EB-2 date could retrogress or become unavailable later in the year.
4. About 758,250 approved employment-based petitions were waiting for a visa number as of June 2024. The Congressional Research Service documented this approved-and-waiting queue across all employment categories; EB-2 and EB-3 make up most of it, though USCIS does not publish a clean EB-2-only count.

EB-2 Country and Occupation Statistics

1. South Korea and Brazil led consular EB-2 visa issuance in FY 2024. South Korea-born applicants received 2,620 EB-2 visas at consulates and Brazil 2,089, the two largest sources of the 10,255 issued worldwide, per the State Department.
2. India and China received only 112 and 219 consular EB-2 visas in FY 2024. Both figures are low because India-born and China-born applicants already in the U.S. generally complete the process through adjustment of status rather than at a consulate abroad, so the consular count captures only part of their EB-2 activity.
3. India was about 71% of FY 2024 H-1B beneficiaries, the main pipeline into EB-2 and EB-3. China was about 12%, per USCIS data cited by the Congressional Research Service, which is why those two countries dominate the EB-2 queue and its backlog.

EB-2 PERM vs. EB-2 NIW Statistics

1. EB-2 PERM requires an employer and a PERM labor certification; the EB-2 NIW does not. Both routes fall under the same EB-2 category, draw from the same 28.6% visa allocation, and share the same monthly final action date, so the priority-date wait is identical for a given country; the difference is the PERM step at the front and whether an employer sponsors the case. Manifest's EB-2 vs. EB-2 NIW guide walks through how the two routes differ.

What These EB-2 PERM Numbers Mean for Your Filing

The EB-2 PERM data points to two pressure points an applicant and employer can plan around: the labor certification at the front, which is high-volume and runs over a year, and the visa cutoff at the back, which depends entirely on country of birth. The factors within an applicant's and employer's control are a clean, well-documented PERM and I-140, and reviewing the current visa bulletin when weighing the PERM route against the NIW. Manifest's immigration attorneys handle employment-based Green Cards across EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3, with flat upfront pricing and case tracking through the Manifest portal. To see where you stand on the EB-2 PERM pathway, request a consultation.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does PERM take for an EB-2 case in 2026?

As of the Department of Labor's March 2026 data, PERM analyst review averaged 501 calendar days, about 16.5 months, with audited cases routed to a separate queue that averaged 343 calendar days. PERM must be completed before the I-140 is filed, so it sits at the front of the EB-2 PERM timeline and, for applicants who are not yet backlogged by their priority date, is the longest single stage.

How many EB-2 Green Cards are issued each year?

In FY 2024, the Department of Homeland Security counted 55,790 people obtaining EB-2 lawful permanent resident status, about 78% of them adjusting status from inside the U.S. The statutory cap is about 40,000 in a typical year (28.6% of the roughly 140,000 worldwide employment-based limit), but unused first-preference numbers can lift the actual total.

How long is the EB-2 backlog?

It depends entirely on country of birth. As of the June 2026 visa bulletin, the EB-2 final action date for India was September 1, 2013 and for China September 1, 2021, while most other countries were current. India's cutoff retrogressed roughly 10 months that month. The State Department updates these cutoffs monthly in the visa bulletin.

How do EB-2 PERM and EB-2 NIW differ?

They differ in structure, not in priority date. EB-2 PERM is employer-sponsored and requires a labor certification; the EB-2 NIW is self-petitioned and does not. Both fall under the same EB-2 category and share the same visa cutoff, so neither moves faster in the green card line for a given country. Which route fits a given person depends on their circumstances and is worth working through with an immigration attorney.

How are most India-born EB-2 Green Cards issued?

Mostly through adjustment of status inside the U.S., not at consulates abroad. Only 112 consular EB-2 visas went to India-born applicants in FY 2024, because applicants already in the U.S. generally complete the process through adjustment of status, so the consular count captures only part of India's EB-2 activity.

Weighing an EB-2 PERM green card? Request a consultation with Manifest Law to talk through the labor certification, your priority date, and whether PERM or the NIW route fits your case.

Disclaimer. This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Reading it, or contacting Manifest Law through this site, does not create an attorney-client relationship. Immigration law changes frequently, and the information here is current only as of the publication date. For advice on your specific situation, consult a licensed attorney. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. This communication is attorney advertising.