Somewhere in your employer's HR or immigration file room — physical or digital — there is a folder with your name on it, sort of. It does not contain your resume or your performance reviews. It contains the wage and notice paperwork tied to your H-1B Labor Condition Application. That folder is called the public access file, and by law your employer has to keep it and make it available.
Most consultants never ask about it. Some do not know it exists. But if you are mid-transfer, waiting on an extension, or just want to confirm your employer filed things correctly, knowing what belongs in this file — and how to ask to see it — is a useful, low-drama way to check your own paper trail.
What the Public Access File Actually Is
Every time an employer files a Labor Condition Application (Form ETA-9035) to support an H-1B petition, federal regulation requires the employer to assemble a public access file for that LCA. This comes from Department of Labor rules at 20 CFR 655.760, part of the same framework that governs prevailing wage and required wage obligations.
The file is not a personnel record. It exists so that any interested party — a Department of Labor investigator, a competing employer, a union, or the worker themselves — can confirm the employer complied with its wage and notice obligations for that specific LCA. It is public in the legal sense: not published online, but open to inspection on request.
What Has to Be Inside It
The exact contents can vary slightly by case type, but a compliant public access file generally includes the items below.
| Document | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Certified LCA (Form ETA-9035/9035E) | The certified copy of the labor condition application tied to your petition, including the job title, wage, and worksite location |
| Wage rate documentation | The actual wage the employer determined for the position and the method used to set it (pay scale, matrix, or system) — this is the actual wage memo |
| Prevailing wage documentation | The prevailing wage determination or the source used (OES survey, employer-provided survey, or Department of Labor determination) for the occupation and area of employment |
| Notice of filing evidence | Proof the employer posted the LCA notice at the worksite for the required period, or distributed it electronically, on or before the date it filed the LCA |
| Summary of benefits | A summary of the benefits offered to US workers in the same occupation, or a statement that the H-1B worker is offered the same benefits on the same basis |
| Corporate change documentation (if applicable) | Where a merger, acquisition, or name change has occurred, documentation showing the successor employer has accepted the terms of the original LCA |
Note what is not in this file: your I-9, your immigration attorney's case notes, or the full I-129 petition package filed with USCIS. The public access file is narrowly about the LCA and the wage and notice obligations that come with it.
Where It Lives and How Long It Stays There
Regulation requires the file to be available at the employer's principal place of business or at the worksite, within one working day after the LCA is filed with the Department of Labor. In practice, most employers keep it with HR or their immigration counsel and can produce it on request rather than leaving it sitting on a shelf for casual walk-ins.
Retention runs for one year beyond the end of the period of employment under that LCA, or one year from the filing date if the worker was never employed under it, or one year from withdrawal if the LCA was withdrawn before use. This matters if you are asking about a role from a prior LCA — the employer may still be required to have kept the file even after you moved on.
How to Ask to Review Yours, Professionally
Requesting to see the public access file is a routine, legally protected inquiry — not a confrontation. Here is a clean way to do it.
- Ask HR or immigration counsel directly, not your manager. Frame it as a compliance question: “I would like to review the public access file for my current LCA.”
- Reference the regulation if it helps: mention 20 CFR 655.760 so the request is clearly recognized rather than mistaken for a records request under a different policy.
- Specify which LCA — worksite, job title, and approximate filing date — since a large employer may have dozens active at once.
- Ask to review, not necessarily to keep. The regulation guarantees access for inspection; it does not spell out an automatic right to a personal copy, so be specific if you want copies of particular pages and let the employer tell you their process.
- Keep the tone neutral. This is standard due diligence many consultants do around a transfer, extension, or amendment — not a signal of distrust.
What the File Will and Will Not Tell You
The public access file will confirm the wage the employer committed to pay you and whether the required notice was posted. It will not tell you the status of your I-140, your priority date, or anything about a pending extension at USCIS. For that, you still need your case tracker or your attorney.
If something in the file looks off — a wage lower than what you understood, or no notice documentation for a worksite where you actually worked — that is worth raising with your attorney or an immigration counsel contact before drawing conclusions. There can be legitimate explanations, like a wage set for a different worksite under a separate LCA.
This article is general information, not legal advice. Every case has its own facts, and you should confirm anything specific to your situation with a licensed immigration attorney.
A Quick Checklist Before You Ask
- Know your current worksite address and job title as listed on your I-129 or offer letter
- Have a rough filing date or petition receipt number in hand
- Decide what you actually want to verify — wage, notice, or benefits summary
- Ask in writing (email is fine) so there is a clear record of your request
Curious how your public access file compares to what a new employer would set up during a transfer? The team at Josh Pros LLC works with consultants through exactly these transitions and can point you toward the right questions to ask. Reach out at contact@joshpros.com or visit https://joshpros.com.
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This is general information, not legal advice. Immigration rules change and outcomes depend on your individual circumstances. Confirm anything that affects your case with a licensed immigration attorney.
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