The DOL has recently begun issuing audit requests asking if the employer has received payment for the PERM attorney fee and/or recruitment/advertising fees from the beneficiary or a third party.
Here is the audit text and sample response:
I hereby declare under penalty of perjury that payments related to this Labor Certification Petition, including the attorney fee and the advertising and recruitment fees were paid by ACME, Inc., not the beneficiary or a third party.
Per § 656.12 (b) and (c), ACME, Inc. has not sought or received payment of any kind for any activity related to obtaining this permanent labor certification, including payment of the employer’s attorneys’ fees or advertising and recruitment fees, whether as an incentive or inducement to filing, or as a reimbursement for costs incurred in preparing or filing a permanent labor certification application. For purposes of this paragraph (b), payment includes, but is not limited to, monetary payments; wage concessions, including deductions from wages, salary, or benefits; kickbacks, bribes, or tributes; in kind payments; and free labor.
ACME, Inc. has not sought or received payment from any source in connection with this application for permanent labor certification.
Sincerely,
X___________________________________
Tom Jones, HR Supervisor, ACME, Inc.
X___________________________________
Inyasamma Patel, Beneficiary