H-1B Visa Wage Levels: How Levels I–IV Are Assigned

Every H-1B position is slotted into one of four H-1B wage levels that set the minimum salary an employer must pay. Level I sits near the 17th percentile of wages for the occupation and area, Level II near the 34th, Level III near the 50th, and Level IV near the 67th.¹ The level assigned to a job reflects how much skill, experience, and independent judgment the role demands, and starting with the FY 2027 cap season it also affects the worker’s odds in the H-1B lottery.

What Each of the Four Levels Covers

Level I — Entry

Level I applies to workers with a basic understanding of the occupation who perform routine tasks under close supervision, with their work reviewed for accuracy. Job descriptions using terms like “research fellow,” “worker in training,” or “internship” point to this tier.² It is the lowest-paid tier.

Level II — Qualified

Level II applies to workers who have a solid grasp of the occupation through education or experience and handle moderately complex tasks with limited judgment. A job requiring the typical education and experience described in the O*NET Job Zones for that occupation usually lands here.²

Level III — Experienced

Level III covers workers with special skills or knowledge gained through additional education or on-the-job experience. They exercise genuine judgment, may coordinate or supervise others, and often carry titles like “senior,” “lead,” or “head.”² Jobs asking for experience at the higher ranges listed in O*NET usually fit this tier.

Level IV — Fully Competent

Level IV is for professionals with enough experience to plan and conduct work that requires independent evaluation and advanced techniques. They solve unusual, complex problems, receive only technical guidance, and often hold management responsibilities.² It is the highest-paid tier.

How the Level Is Assigned

The National Prevailing Wage Center starts every application at Level I and then evaluates whether the employer’s job requirements push the role higher. The evaluation is point-based: the center compares the tasks, knowledge, skills, education, and experience the employer demands against what O*NET identifies as typical for that occupation.² Points accumulate, and the total determines the level. Anything above four caps at Level IV.

In practice, a job requiring a master’s degree when a bachelor’s is the field norm earns additional points, often pushing a role from Level I to Level II. Years of specialized experience beyond the entry-level baseline add more. Supervisory duties are another strong signal, and positions that involve coordinating or managing other employees commonly land at Level III or IV. Every requirement beyond the occupation’s baseline raises the assigned level and, with it, the minimum salary owed.

Employers document these requirements on the Labor Condition Application (LCA), which they file electronically through the Department of Labor’s FLAG system.³ The LCA must accurately reflect the position’s duties, wage offer, and work location. A mismatch between the stated duties and the chosen wage level can trigger requests for additional evidence or denial when USCIS reviews the petition.

How a Level Becomes a Dollar Figure

The four levels set percentile positions within a wage distribution, but the actual salary depends on two things: the occupation’s Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code and the geographic area where the work takes place. Every H-1B position is mapped to an SOC code, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics collects wage data for each SOC code across hundreds of metro areas. The Office of Foreign Labor Certification uses that data to build localized wage tables.⁴

Location matters enormously. A Level I software developer wage in San Francisco is substantially higher than the Level I wage for the same SOC code in a rural county, because the underlying distribution reflects local labor market conditions. It also means an employer transferring a worker to a new location may need to file a new LCA at a different prevailing wage.

The prevailing wage is only half of the required-wage calculation. An H-1B employer must pay whichever is higher: the prevailing wage for the occupation and area, or the employer’s own actual wage for workers with similar qualifications doing the same job at the same worksite.⁵ If an employer has no comparable employees, the actual wage is simply what it pays the H-1B worker.⁶

Why the Level Now Affects Lottery Odds

Starting with the FY 2027 H-1B cap season, USCIS uses a weighted selection process that gives higher-paid registrations better odds in the lottery. The rule took effect on February 27, 2026.⁷ Each registration is entered into the pool a number of times based on its wage level:

Level IV: 4 entries
Level III: 3 entries
Level II: 2 entries
Level I: 1 entry

The lottery level is based on the proffered wage compared to the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) data for the relevant SOC code and area. USCIS assigns each beneficiary to the highest wage level their offered salary equals or exceeds. Once one of a beneficiary’s entries is selected, the duplicates are removed so each person counts only once toward the annual cap.⁷

The practical effect is that a Level IV registration carries roughly four times the selection probability of a Level I registration. Filing at Level I is no longer just a compliance question. It cuts the chance of winning a slot.

Looking Up the Wage for a Specific Job

The Office of Foreign Labor Certification publishes the wage data through its online OFLC Wage Search tool at flag.dol.gov. To run a search, you need the O*NET or SOC code for the occupation (or the formal job title) and the state, county, or metro area where the work will be performed.⁸ Results display all four levels for that occupation and area, with hourly and annual figures.

Those figures are minimums. The employer still has to compare them to its own actual wage for similarly employed workers and pay whichever is higher.⁴ Saving the results is worth the effort as documentation if the petition is ever audited.

What Happens When the Level Is Wrong

The Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division investigates H-1B wage violations. When it finds an employer underpaid an H-1B worker, the first remedy is back wages covering the full difference between what the worker should have earned and what they were actually paid.⁹

Civil money penalties scale with the severity of the violation:

Standard violations, including LCA misrepresentation and notification failures: up to $2,364 per violation.¹⁰
Willful violations, including deliberate underpayment or willful misrepresentation: up to $9,624 per violation.¹⁰
Willful violations that displace a U.S. worker within 90 days before or after the petition is filed: up to $67,367 per violation.¹⁰

The consequence most employers fear most is debarment from the H-1B and other immigration visa programs. Standard violations carry a minimum one-year bar, willful violations at least two years, and willful violations combined with U.S. worker displacement at least three.⁹

Alternatives to the Standard Wage Tables

The OES-based four-tier system is the default, but it is not the only option. If a union contract covers the occupation, the wage rate in that contract serves as the prevailing wage.⁶

Employers can also submit an independent wage survey to the National Prevailing Wage Center. The survey has to be recent (data collected within 24 months), cover the area of intended employment, reflect the same occupation across industries, and use a statistically valid methodology. When those conditions are met, the center will use the survey figures in place of the OES data.² Employer surveys are most common in specialized fields where the OES data doesn’t capture niche roles well, and the burden of proving the survey’s validity is on the employer.

1
Library of Congress. Prevailing Wage Requirements for H-1B, H-1B1, and E-3 Workers
2
U.S. Department of Labor. Prevailing Wage Determination Policy Guidance
3
Foreign Labor Certification (FLAG). Labor Condition Application Specialty Occupations with the H-1B, H-1B1 and E-3 Programs
4
U.S. Department of Labor. Prevailing Wage Information and Resources
5
eCFR. 20 CFR 655.731 – What is the first LCA requirement, regarding wages?
6
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 62G: Must an H-1B worker be paid a guaranteed wage?
7
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. H-1B Cap Season
8
Foreign Labor Certification (FLAG). OFLC Wage Search
9
eCFR. 20 CFR Part 655 Subpart I – Enforcement of H-1B Labor Condition Applications
10
U.S. Department of Labor. Civil Money Penalty Inflation Adjustments