If you were one of the thousands of people trying to file H-2B labor certification applications on Jan. 1, you may have noticed a hiccup in the process. Around midnight, those attempting to file applications via the Department of Labor's iCERT portal were either kicked out or received error messages. The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) reported that after it contacted the DOL Liaison Committee, the DOL posted the following statement:
We sincerely apologize for the major service interruption in the iCERT System around midnight. In the interest of equity for all stakeholders, the Department's technology staff have temporarily taken the iCERT System down. We are working diligently to determine root cause analysis and developing a plan to correct this situation as expeditiously as possible. As soon as we are prepared to bring the iCERT System back up, the Department will place a new public notice on the OFLC website and the iCERT System website.
The DOL cited high-demand as a potential cause for the glitch. More than 97,800 worker requests were pending.
