Prevailing Wage for Compliance Officers
Prevailing wage for Compliance Officers, the official DOL title under SOC 13-1041, sets the minimum salary a sponsoring employer must pay on an H-1B, E-3, or green card petition. Whether your offer is for a Driver License Examiner, a License Registration Examiner, or a broader regulatory compliance role, DOL sets four experience-based wage levels and the floor shifts significantly by city.
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Entry-level positions requiring minimal related experience. Workers perform routine compliance tasks under close supervision, apply basic procedures, and typically hold a relevant degree but have limited independent judgment in regulatory or enforcement decisions.
The most common filing level for Compliance Officers. Workers have one to three years of experience, handle standard compliance reviews with moderate supervision, and apply established regulatory frameworks independently across typical caseloads.
Experienced professionals who handle complex compliance matters with significant autonomy. Workers typically have four or more years in the field, advise on regulatory risk, mentor junior staff, and manage multifaceted investigations or licensing reviews.
Senior or lead compliance professionals with full technical competence. These workers set policy, lead compliance programs, supervise teams, and serve as subject-matter authorities on complex regulatory frameworks with little or no direct oversight.
Prevailing Wage for Compliance Officers by OES area
Each shape is a DOL OES area, the unit prevailing wage is published for.
What’s an OES area?
The Department of Labor publishes prevailing wages for geographic zones called OES areas. Every U.S. county belongs to exactly one, and the wage floor applies across the whole area. A worker in Oakland gets the San Francisco metro wage, not a separate Oakland wage.
Top 10 cities · Level 1
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See which U.S. employers are actively hiring for Compliance Officers and sponsoring H-1B, OPT, and green card visas at or above the prevailing wage.
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Watch for title aliasing under a different SOC
Employers sometimes file LCAs for compliance roles under management or legal SOC codes, which carry different wage floors. If your offer letter says Compliance Manager or Regulatory Counsel, confirm the SOC on the LCA matches 13-1041 before comparing your salary to this floor.
Account for the public-sector wage gap
Federal contractor and state agency compliance roles in metros like Washington, DC often pay near the top of the L2 range, while similar Driver License Examiner titles in smaller state offices can sit near L1 floors. Verify which sector your employer falls under before negotiating.
Flag geographic outliers early in your job search
San Jose and San Francisco set Compliance Officers prevailing wages well above the national median at every level, while Puerto Rico metros sit significantly below. The worksite address on your LCA, not your employer's headquarters, determines which wage floor applies to your petition.
Use Migrate Mate to find employers with sponsorship history
Migrate Mate shows which companies have previously sponsored Compliance Officers on H-1B or other visas. Filtering by this occupation lets you focus outreach on employers already familiar with the 13-1041 filing process, reducing the risk of offers that stall on sponsorship.
Jobs for Compliance Officers are hiring across the US. Find yours.
Find Jobs for Compliance OfficersPrevailing Wage by Reported Job Title
DOL classifies these titles under SOC 13-1041.00 alongside Compliance Officers, so the same four-tier wage schedule applies to each. Tap a title to see the full breakdown.
Driver Examiner Prevailing Wage
Driver Examiner Prevailing Wage
Driver Examiner positions fall under SOC 13-1041.00 (Compliance Officers). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Driver License Agent Prevailing Wage
Driver License Agent Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Driver License Agent for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 13-1041.00 (Compliance Officers). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Driver License Examiner Prevailing Wage
Driver License Examiner Prevailing Wage
Driver License Examiner is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 13-1041.00 (Compliance Officers). All roles in this SOC share the same prevailing wage tiers. The level an employer files at depends on what the role requires, not which title is used.
Examiner Prevailing Wage
Examiner Prevailing Wage
Examiner positions fall under SOC 13-1041.00 (Compliance Officers). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
License Examiner Prevailing Wage
License Examiner Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a License Examiner for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 13-1041.00 (Compliance Officers). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
License Registration Examiner Prevailing Wage
License Registration Examiner Prevailing Wage
License Registration Examiner is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 13-1041.00 (Compliance Officers). All roles in this SOC share the same prevailing wage tiers. The level an employer files at depends on what the role requires, not which title is used.
Licensing Analyst Prevailing Wage
Licensing Analyst Prevailing Wage
Licensing Analyst positions fall under SOC 13-1041.00 (Compliance Officers). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Motor Vehicle Clerk Prevailing Wage
Motor Vehicle Clerk Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Motor Vehicle Clerk for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 13-1041.00 (Compliance Officers). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Public Service Representative (PSR) Prevailing Wage
Public Service Representative (PSR) Prevailing Wage
Public Service Representative (PSR) is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 13-1041.00 (Compliance Officers). All roles in this SOC share the same prevailing wage tiers. The level an employer files at depends on what the role requires, not which title is used.
Transportation Services Representative (TSR) Prevailing Wage
Transportation Services Representative (TSR) Prevailing Wage
Transportation Services Representative (TSR) positions fall under SOC 13-1041.00 (Compliance Officers). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does DOL set the prevailing wage for Compliance Officers?
DOL calculates prevailing wages using Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics data collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. For SOC 13-1041, it surveys employer-reported wages across hundreds of metropolitan areas and divides results into four levels. Employers filing an LCA must pay at least the level that matches the position's experience and responsibility requirements. OFLC publishes these figures and updates them periodically.
What do the four wage levels mean and how do I identify mine?
DOL defines Level 1 as entry-level with routine duties under supervision, Level 2 as qualified with moderate experience and independent work, Level 3 as experienced handling complex matters with autonomy, and Level 4 as fully competent with senior or lead responsibility. Your level is determined by the job duties in the LCA, not your job title. Review the position description your employer submits to OFLC and compare it to DOL's level criteria.
Why does the same Compliance Officers role pay so differently across cities?
Regional OES surveys capture local labor market conditions, so wages in high-cost metros like San Jose or Washington, DC reflect local employer competition and cost of labor. The LCA worksite rule requires employers to use the wage for the specific city where you will actually work, not their headquarters. Dense regulatory and financial markets drive up local demand for compliance professionals, which is reflected directly in the metro-level prevailing wage floor.
What happens if my job offer is below the prevailing wage for a sponsored position?
An employer cannot certify an LCA if the offered salary falls below the applicable prevailing wage. USCIS will deny the H-1B or other sponsored petition if the LCA wage level does not support the actual salary. The employer must either increase the offer to meet the floor or reclassify the role at a lower level with duties that genuinely match. Accepting a below-floor offer does not fix the underlying filing problem.
How do I find and verify the Compliance Officers prevailing wage for a specific U.S. location?
Use the OFLC Wage Search tool to look up the current prevailing wage for SOC 13-1041 in any covered metropolitan area. Select the occupational code, choose the relevant metro, and compare all four levels to your offer. You can also check O*NET for occupational context. Migrate Mate lets you filter open compliance roles by employer sponsorship history and location, so you can see where active hiring is happening before you apply.
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