Software Engineer at American Express — H-1B Wage Level, PERM Record & Green Card Timeline
American Express certified about 310 Software Engineer H-1B LCAs in FY2025 at a median offered wage of $128,700, with a PERM certification rate near 95%. Here is the modeled timeline, current as of August 2026.
H-1B LCA Snapshot
Data as of August 2026 · Source: DOL OFLC LCA Disclosure Data (FY2025)
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Certified LCAs (FY2025) | 310 |
| Median offered wage | $128,700 |
| p25 / p75 offered wage | $112,000 / $145,000 |
| Wage-level mix (I/II/III/IV) | 9% / 33% / 43% / 15% |
| Top worksites | New York NY · Phoenix AZ |
OES Prevailing Wage & FY2027 Lottery Tier
Data as of August 2026 · Source: FLAG System OES Wage Data (SOC 15-1252, Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale AZ) + DHS Wage-Weighted Selection Final Rule (eff. Feb 27, 2026)
| Level | OES Prevailing Wage | FY2027 Lottery Entries |
|---|---|---|
| I | $98,700 | 1 |
| II | $118,900 | 2 |
| III | $139,100 | 3 |
| IV | $159,300 | 4 |
Median offered wage is about 4% above the Level III prevailing wage bracket used for the plurality (43%) of Amex engineer LCAs.
PERM Track Record
Data as of August 2026 · Source: DOL OFLC PERM Disclosure Data (FY2025)
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Certified / Denied / Withdrawn | 268 / 5 / 11 |
| Median days, filing → certification | 244 |
| Audit rate | 12% |
| Median PERM-filed wage | $131,000 |
| Stated minimum education/experience | Bachelor''s + 5 yrs (SOC 15-1252) |
USCIS H-1B Approvals & Denials
Data as of August 2026 · Source: USCIS H-1B Employer Data Hub (FY2025)
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Approvals | 295 |
| Denials | 16 |
| Denial rate | 5.4% |
Green Card Timeline Projection
Data as of August 2026 · Source: DOS Visa Bulletin (August 2026) + USCIS Processing Times
Chargeability is selected on the VisaSherpa.ai planner, not this URL. Amex engineers file predominantly EB-2.
| Chargeability | EB Category | Aug 2026 Final Action Date | Approx. Priority-Date Wait |
|---|---|---|---|
| India | EB-2 | Unavailable ("U") | Multi-year, indeterminate |
| China | EB-2 | September 1, 2021 | ~4-5 years |
| Rest of World | EB-2 | Current | Minimal once I-140 approved |
I-140 regular processing: ~2.5 months; premium: 15 business days. I-485 at the National Benefits Center: ~9.5-18 months for Rest-of-World chargeability.
FAQs
Q: How competitive is American Express''s PERM wage relative to New York-area fintech peers? A: At a $131,000 median PERM-filed wage, Amex trails pure-tech employers but tracks close to other large financial-services filers like Citigroup and Capital One.
Q: What is Amex''s H-1B denial rate? A: 5.4% in FY2025 — comparable to the broad financial-services average.
Q: Does American Express sponsor most Software Engineer H-1Bs through to PERM? A: The 268 FY2025 PERM certifications against 310 LCAs suggest the large majority of tenured H-1B engineers are put forward for green card sponsorship.
Q: What wage level dominates Amex''s Software Engineer filings? A: Level III (43%), giving most registrations 3 entries under the FY2027 wage-weighted H-1B lottery.
Q: How long until an EB-2 Rest-of-World engineer at Amex can file I-485? A: Since EB-2 ROW is Current in the August 2026 bulletin, I-485 can typically be filed concurrently with I-140, subject to PERM/I-140 processing (~2.5-3 months combined lead time).
Related Pages
- /visa-requirements/financial-analyst-at-citigroup-h1b-wage-perm-green-card
- /visa-requirements/data-scientist-at-citigroup-h1b-wage-perm-green-card
- /visa-requirements/business-analyst-at-capital-one-h1b-wage-perm-green-card
- /visa-requirements/software-engineer-at-capital-one-h1b-wage-perm-green-card
Model your own H-1B → green card timeline free at VisaSherpa.ai.