6 Ways to Research a Company's Visa Sponsorship History

Visa sponsorship history is public record. Every H-1B petition, LCA filing, PERM application, and J-1 designation an employer files sits in a free federal database, so you can check whether a U.S. company actually sponsors visas before you apply.

The catch is that this data lives across four .gov sources, and pulling it manually means downloading quarterly spreadsheets and filtering by SOC code. These six methods cover both the fast path (a job board that's already done the verification) and the manual lookups for roles you find elsewhere.

Method 1: Search verified visa sponsors on Migrate Mate

Migrate Mate is a job board that only lists U.S. roles from employers with verified visa sponsorship history. Every listing is at a company that has filed an LCA before, so the upstream sponsorship check is already done.

The verification is built on DOL LCA data: employers with certified Labor Condition Applications appear on the board; employers with no filing history don't.

Method 2: Search the USCIS H-1B Employer Data Hub

The USCIS H-1B Employer Data Hub shows how many H-1B approvals and denials each company has had between FY 2009 and FY 2024. USCIS archived the live search tool, but the underlying spreadsheets are still on the archived Data Hub page.

Download the most recent fiscal-year file and search by employer name. Try a few spelling variations, since the data uses a company's tax registration name rather than its brand name. A parent company and its subsidiaries can show up as separate rows.

Method 3: Check DOL LCA filings for H-1B, E-3, and H-1B1 sponsors

Before any H-1B, E-3, or H-1B1 petition reaches USCIS, the employer first files a Labor Condition Application (LCA) with the Department of Labor. The LCA is the paperwork where the employer commits to a specific wage and worksite for the role. DOL publishes every certified LCA in a quarterly spreadsheet, and all three visa types appear in the same file.

Download the most recent quarterly file from the DOL OFLC performance data page and filter by employer name and SOC code (the federal classification code for your job title). Check the wage column against your target salary: if the company has already filed for roles paying near your expected level, they've effectively done the homework for hiring someone like you.

Method 4: Verify an LCA case or J-1 sponsor designation

Two government tools verify specific sponsorship claims: the DOL FLAG case status search and the State Department's J-1 designated sponsor list.

• LCA case status (DOL FLAG) confirms whether a specific LCA has been certified. When a recruiter says "we already filed your LCA, the case number is I-200-26100-123456," you can enter it on the FLAG case status search and confirm before signing. LCA processing runs seven working days under DOL regulation, so "we're working on it" two weeks before your start date means the paperwork isn't filed yet.
• J-1 designation (State Department) confirms whether an organization is authorized to sponsor exchange visitors. Any company running a J-1 Trainee or Research Scholar program must appear on the official J-1 designated sponsor list. If it isn't there, it isn't legally authorized to sponsor.

Method 5: Check PERM filings to find green-card-track sponsors

PERM is the green card application an employer files for an employee. A company filing 200 PERM applications a year is actively moving people from H-1B to green card. One filing two is probably handling a single case. A company that runs H-1Bs but never files PERM isn't planning to keep workers past the initial visa term.

Download the PERM file from the DOL OFLC performance data page and filter by employer name and SOC code.

Then on LinkedIn, open the company's People tab, filter by "Where they studied," and look for employees with international degrees who have been there three or more years. Profiles that match confirm the company keeps sponsored workers, not just hires them.

Method 6: Read the job posting and ask the recruiter

Job postings are the fastest first-pass filter. "Visa sponsorship available" or "will sponsor qualified candidates" means the role is open to sponsored applicants. "Must be authorized to work without sponsorship" or "no visa sponsorship" rules it out. Many postings stay silent on sponsorship; no language isn't a no, so cross-check with Methods 2 or 3 before writing off a company with strong filing history.

Even at companies with a long sponsorship record, the decision happens role-by-role. Ask in your first recruiter call: "Is this role open to candidates who need H-1B sponsorship?" A clean yes or no saves weeks of misallocated interview prep.

After the offer, ask three things: who's handling the filing legally, whether sponsorship language can be added to the offer letter, and how the H-1B lottery works given your start date.

Find verified visa sponsors faster on Migrate Mate

Migrate Mate is a U.S. job board where every listing is at an employer with a verified visa sponsorship history. The verification is built on Department of Labor records, so every company you see has already filed sponsorship paperwork for someone before.

Simply filter the board by visa type, role, and location, and apply directly.

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