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Countdown to April 2nd: Your H-1B Last Minute Checklist

nd and is projected to exceed the cap of 65,000 visas plus an additional 20,000 for candidates with masters degrees or higher by Friday, April 6th. That means, you have to be ready as soon as filing begins to ensure you, or your employee or candidate makes the H-1B lottery. Don’t let the last minute lure you into filing a sloppy or incomplete petition. Before you file, make sure that the answer and information are consistent across all documents including the LCA, the petition, and all documentation describing the duties and requirements for the job. Inconsistent answers will likely trigger an RFE, and a closer scrutiny of the case. Common education RFEs occur when a client has a degree specialization that doesn’t match the job, incomplete or generalized education, or a degree from outside of the United States, and the petition is not filed with a credential evaluation that clearly articulates the academic value of your or your employee or client’s education and work experience in terms of US academic value. It is also important to verify that the degree was earned in an accredited institutions. If you or your client or employee has one of these educational situations, it is important to order a credential evaluation to file WITH the H-1B petition come April 2nd. A work experience conversion may be necessary to account for the gaps between your education, or your client or employee’s education and H-1B educational eligibility requirements. Last year, CIS issued a record number of RFEs for H-1B petitions, especially for beneficiaries working as computer programmers at level 1 wages. If your client has a borderline job that doesn’t ALWAYS require a US bachelors degree as a minimum requirement according to the US Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook, your case, or your client or employee’s case will need additional evidence including an expert opinion letter to prove why this position is uniquely specialized. There are some situations that are RFE magnets. If you, or your employee or client: • Has a degree from outside of the US, • Has a three-year bachelors degree, • Has an incomplete degree or no college at all, • Has a generalized degree or a degree in a major that doesn’t exactly match the H-1B job, or • Works a borderline occupation where it’s unclear whether the educational qualifications meet H-1B requirements for specialization, You need to know before you file and address the situation accordingly to preempt an RFE. At TheDegreePeople.com, we work with difficult H-1B cases and H-1B RFEs every year. We know what triggers and RFE and we know how to take steps to effectively preempt them. USCIS is always a wildcard, so we keep an eye on their approval trends every year. For a free review of your case, or your client or employee’s case, visit ccifree.com/. We will get back to you in 48 hours or less with a full analysis, pre-evaluation, and our expert recommendations on what to do to avoid an RFE.]]>

Your Very Very Last Minute H1B Checklist

  • Consistent dates, locations, spellings and other answers.
  • Double-check all of the documents and applications included in the petition to make sure all of the answers are consistent. Inconsistencies between applications, educational documents, and resumes can trigger a pretty serious RFE as CIS is cracking down on visa fraud. Inconsistent dates and locations for where the candidate has lived, worked, and gone to school are big red flags, as are misspellings.
    1. Education clearly meets CIS requirements for H1B eligibility.
    Find out right now. Simply go to ccifree.com and attach the candidate’s educational documents and an accurate, current resume, along with the job title and we will respond within 24 hours with a full pre-evaluation of your case. We will include all of your options for writing the evaluation for the educational equivalency needed to get the H1B visa approved. We offer rush delivery options to get your credential evaluation to you in as fast as three hours. Educational requirements for CIS are tricky. If the candidate has a degree from outside of the United States, do NOT file without a credential evaluation. The candidate may have a degree earned in the United States that is not H1B qualified. The degree must be an exact match for the job or CIS will not approve the visa.
    1. Documentation clearly shows the job is specialized.
    H1B requirements state the job must require a US bachelor’s degree or higher or its foreign equivalent to be considered specialized. The H1B visa program’s purpose is to bring highly skilled workers to the US to fill these highly specialized jobs that the US workforce cannot fill on its own. That means you have to show that the job requires a specialized skillset, which means an advanced degree in the exact field of employ. To prove this, provide a copy of the ad for the job that includes duties and minimum requirements, as well as the official job description itself. Also include ads and descriptions for similar jobs in the same field to show that this job is specialized across the board and not just to accommodate the candidate’s visa. If the job is particularly specialized for this particular company, include an expert opinion letter as to why this is the case.
    1. Organized and in order!
    Make sure your petition is in order with all of the paperwork where CIS expects it to be. A disorganized petition is not pleasant to read and this will impact approval. File for the audience and it will pay off in the end. Good luck! About the Author Sheila Danzig Sheila Danzig is the Executive Director at TheDegreePeople.com, a Foreign Credentials Evaluation Agency. For a free analysis of any difficult case, RFE, Denial, or NOID, please go to http://ccifree.com/ or call 800.771.4723.]]>

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