Prevailing Wage for Surgical Assistants
Prevailing wage for Surgical Assistants is set by the DOL across four experience levels, from entry-level technicians to fully credentialed Certified First Assistant (CFA) and Certified Registered Nurse First Assistant (CRNFA) practitioners. Whether your title reads Certified Surgical Assistant (CSA) or Certified Surgical First Assistant (CSFA), the floor that governs your sponsored position varies significantly by worksite city.
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Entry-level Surgical Assistants with limited hands-on OR experience, typically recent graduates of accredited surgical assisting programs or candidates pursuing first certification. Work is closely supervised with a narrow scope of assigned tasks.
Qualified Surgical Assistants with practical case experience across multiple surgical specialties. Level 2 is the most common DOL filing level for this occupation, reflecting mid-career practitioners who work with moderate supervision.
Experienced Surgical Assistants who manage complex cases with minimal supervision, often holding specialty credentials or cross-trained across high-acuity services such as cardiovascular, neurosurgical, or robotic-assisted procedures.
Fully competent Surgical Assistants in senior or lead roles, setting protocols, mentoring junior staff, and operating with full professional autonomy across the surgical suite. Often holds dual credentials or an advanced clinical degree.
Prevailing Wage for Surgical Assistants 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 Surgical Assistants and sponsoring H-1B, OPT, and green card visas at or above the prevailing wage.
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Verify your credential maps to SOC 29-9093
Titles like Certified Surgical Technician or GI Technician sometimes get filed under a different SOC code, which can mean a lower prevailing wage floor. Confirm your employer's LCA references SOC 29-9093 before accepting a sponsored offer.
Watch for Minneapolis and Las Vegas outliers
Minneapolis-area prevailing wages for this occupation run far above the national median at every level, while metros like San Juan or Gainesville sit well below. The worksite city on the LCA determines your floor, not where your employer is headquartered.
Separate base pay from on-call and shift differentials
Surgical Assistants often receive on-call stipends and evening or weekend differentials. DOL's prevailing wage calculation counts only guaranteed wages, so confirm your base salary alone clears the applicable level floor before adding variable pay.
Find employers who have sponsored Surgical Assistants
Migrate Mate shows which hospitals and surgical groups have historical H-1B or green card sponsorship for this occupation, so you can focus your search on employers already familiar with the LCA and PERM process for clinical roles.
Jobs for Surgical Assistants are hiring across the US. Find yours.
Find Jobs for Surgical AssistantsPrevailing Wage by Reported Job Title
DOL classifies these titles under SOC 29-9093.00 alongside Surgical Assistants, so the same four-tier wage schedule applies to each. Tap a title to see the full breakdown.
Certified First Assistant (CFA) Prevailing Wage
Certified First Assistant (CFA) Prevailing Wage
Certified First Assistant (CFA) positions fall under SOC 29-9093.00 (Surgical Assistants). 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.
Certified Registered Nurse First Assistant (CRNFA) Prevailing Wage
Certified Registered Nurse First Assistant (CRNFA) Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Certified Registered Nurse First Assistant (CRNFA) for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 29-9093.00 (Surgical Assistants). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Certified Surgical Assistant (CSA) Prevailing Wage
Certified Surgical Assistant (CSA) Prevailing Wage
Certified Surgical Assistant (CSA) is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 29-9093.00 (Surgical Assistants). 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.
Certified Surgical First Assistant (CSFA) Prevailing Wage
Certified Surgical First Assistant (CSFA) Prevailing Wage
Certified Surgical First Assistant (CSFA) positions fall under SOC 29-9093.00 (Surgical Assistants). 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.
Certified Surgical Technician Prevailing Wage
Certified Surgical Technician Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Certified Surgical Technician for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 29-9093.00 (Surgical Assistants). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Gastrointestinal Technician (GI Technician) Prevailing Wage
Gastrointestinal Technician (GI Technician) Prevailing Wage
Gastrointestinal Technician (GI Technician) is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 29-9093.00 (Surgical Assistants). 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.
Registered Nurse First Assistant (RNFA) Prevailing Wage
Registered Nurse First Assistant (RNFA) Prevailing Wage
Registered Nurse First Assistant (RNFA) positions fall under SOC 29-9093.00 (Surgical Assistants). 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.
Surgical First Assistant Prevailing Wage
Surgical First Assistant Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Surgical First Assistant for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 29-9093.00 (Surgical Assistants). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Surgical Scrub Technician (Surgical Scrub Tech) Prevailing Wage
Surgical Scrub Technician (Surgical Scrub Tech) Prevailing Wage
Surgical Scrub Technician (Surgical Scrub Tech) is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 29-9093.00 (Surgical Assistants). 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.
Surgical Technician (Surgical Tech) Prevailing Wage
Surgical Technician (Surgical Tech) Prevailing Wage
Surgical Technician (Surgical Tech) positions fall under SOC 29-9093.00 (Surgical Assistants). 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 Surgical Assistants?
DOL derives prevailing wages for Surgical Assistants from Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics surveys collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics across hundreds of metro areas. The OFLC publishes these figures by SOC code and geographic area. Employers sponsoring a visa must pay at least the DOL-published wage for the applicable level and worksite location, certified through the LCA process.
What do the four wage levels mean and how do I know which one applies to my offer?
DOL assigns levels based on experience, supervision, and scope. Level 1 covers entry-level assistants under close oversight. Level 2 reflects qualified practitioners working somewhat independently, and is the most common filing level for this occupation. Level 3 applies to experienced professionals handling complex cases. Level 4 covers senior or lead roles with full autonomy. Your employer selects the level based on the actual job duties described in the LCA, not your years of experience alone.
Why does the prevailing wage for the same role vary so much between cities?
DOL calculates prevailing wages using regional OES surveys, which capture local labor market conditions. A Certified First Assistant in Minneapolis operates in a market with different wage norms than one in San Juan or Gainesville. Critically, the LCA must list the actual worksite city, not the employer's headquarters. OFLC enforces this worksite rule, so if your hospital system spans multiple locations, the wage floor is set by wherever you physically work.
What happens if my job offer is below the prevailing wage for a sponsored position?
A sponsored position that pays below the applicable DOL prevailing wage cannot be certified. OFLC will deny the LCA, which blocks the H-1B or PERM petition entirely. If an offer is below the floor, the employer must either increase the salary to meet the prevailing wage or reclassify the position at the correct level before filing. USCIS also reviews wage compliance during petition adjudication.
How do I find and verify the prevailing wage for a specific Surgical Assistants role in a U.S. city?
Use the OFLC Wage Search tool, which lets you look up current DOL prevailing wages by SOC code 29-9093 and metro area. Select the geographic area matching your worksite city to see all four level wages. You can also check O*NET for occupation-level context. Migrate Mate lists employers with active sponsorship history for this role, so you can cross-reference posted salaries against the DOL floor for that location.
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