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Petitioners selected in the FY 2024 H-1B lottery have been notified and have 90 days from the date of notification to file complete petitions.  We are a couple weeks into filing season and there is no time to waste! While the rate of RFEs has dropped, applicants are still running into issues due to strict USCIS approval trends which make it difficult for applicants to know what USCIS considers a red flag before it’s too late.

At CCI TheDegreePeople.com, we work with clients with RFEs every year.  We know how to answer them, and we also know that the best way to beat an RFE is to prevent an RFE by being aware of common eligibility issues and addressing them before it becomes a visa approval issue.

1. Three-year bachelor’s degree. This is particularly an issue for applicants with Indian three-year bachelor degrees.  While there are comparable classroom contact hours between this three-year degree and a US four-year degree, USCIS is hung up on that missing fourth year of college.  The best way to prevent this is a work experience conversion that converts three years of progressive work experience into one year of college credit.

• Degree specialization in a different field than the H-1B job.  Years ago, USCIS would accept that an H-1B employee with a degree in a field related to the H-1B job made them eligible for H-1B status.  Unfortunately, it has become the norm that the degree must be an exact match for the H-1B job.  If the degree is generalized or mismatched from the exact field of the H-1B job, a credential evaluation that takes course content and work experience in the field of the H-1B job into account can fill in any gaps between the degree the beneficiary has and the degree the beneficiary needs. 

• Occupation does not ALWAYS require a bachelor’s degree or higher.  According to eligibility requirements, to qualify as a specialty occupation a job must normally require a US bachelor’s degree or higher to be hired.  USCIS has consistently been adjudicating the exception as the norm.  If a job does not ALWAYS require a bachelor’s degree or higher, such as Computer Programmer, USCIS has been issuing RFEs instead of approving the visa.  In this case, you will need an expert opinion letter written by an expert in the field of the H-1B job who has experience making hiring decisions regarding the position in question.  You will also need to provide additional documentation as to why this job in particular requires an advanced degree.

These are just three of the many perennial H-1B eligibility issues that applicants run into.  Employer-employee relationship and wage level issues are also common, along with other unexpected education issues that can typically be addressed with a detailed credential evaluation.  Before you file, let us review your case for free to catch those red flags before USCIS does and fix them.  We write each credential evaluation uniquely, we work with experts in all H-1B fields, and we will consult with you on what additional evidence and documentation is needed to strengthen your case.

For a free review of your case visit www.ccifree.com.  We will respond in four hours or less.

Sheila Danzig

Sheila Danzig is the director of CCI TheDegreePeople.com.  Sheila specializes in overturning RFEs and Denials for work visas.

USCIS has announced that the FY2024 H-1B cap-subject lottery is complete.  They have not released news regarding registration numbers and data, however those selected to submit complete petitions have been notified.

Currently, it is predicted that between 550,000 and 600,000 electronic registrations were filed.  These are record numbers, continuing the trend which accelerated with the new two-step registration process.  While high competition may cause would-be H-1B applicants to explore other options, demand for H-1B cap-subject visas is likely to continue to spike due to demand for highly skilled workers in STEM industries and consulting firms.

If your registration, or if your employee or client’s registration was selected, you have 90 days to file a complete H-1B petition. Don’t wait!  We have seen up to three rounds of Requests for Evidence before visa approval, delaying employee start dates and interrupting sponsor workflow. 

Before you file, let us review your case to identify any weaknesses or red flags before USCIS does.  Visit www.ccifree.com for a free review of your case.  We will respond in 4 hours or less.

Sheila Danzig

Sheila Danzig is the director of CCI TheDegreePeople.com.  Sheila specializes in overturning RFEs and Denials for work visas.

Filing season for all H-1B applications subject to the annual cap is coming right up.  There are 85,000 annual H-1B visas available for highly skilled foreign workers in specialty occupations, 20,000 reserved for applicants with master’s degrees or higher.  Last year, USCIS received 484,000 registrations.  USCIS selected 127,600 to submit complete petitions. 

This year, again there will be a two-step application process beginning with electronic registration in early March, 2023.  Employers can register by logging into the USCIS H-1B Registration System for a fee of $10 per registration.  While the proposed USCIS rule to increase work visa fees to subsidize the asylum program and overhaul USCIS operations will raise this fee in the future, we do not anticipate this year’s fees will be impacted.    

Following the registration period, USCIS will conduct the H-1B lottery and notify registrants that have been selected to submit full H-1B petitions.  Those selected will then have 90 days to file completed petitions.

Beginning in April, USCIS will begin adjudicating H-1B petitions, which can take up to a few months.  Those selected will be notified if their visa has been approved outright, denied, or received an RFE, or request for evidence. 

It is time for employers to identify their H-1B cap-subject staffing for FY2024 in time for registration, and in anticipation of building a strong case for H-1B hires.  However, preparation should not stop there.  Since H-1B employees begin work on October 1^st, 2023, the first day of FY2024, it is important to file a complete petition as soon as possible.  At CCI TheDegreePeople.com, we have seen up to three rounds of RFEs before a visa is approved, delaying employee start dates and interrupting employer workflow.

The best way to answer an RFE is to prevent it in the first place.  As you prepare to register and file, let us review your case and advise strategies for how to prevent possible red flags and common approval problems.

Visit www.ccifree.com for a free review of your case.  We will respond in 4 hours or less.

Sheila Danzig

Sheila Danzig is the director of CCI TheDegreePeople.com.  Sheila specializes in overturning RFEs and Denials for work visas.

The Biden Administration’s Proposed Rule, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Fee Schedule Changes to Certain Other Immigration Benefit Request Requirements, CIS No. 2687-21; DHS Docket No. USCIS 2021-0010 is scheduled to be read on January 11, 2023 for a listening session with the final rule and changes taking effect after a 60-day public comment period.  This sprawling, over 400-page proposal seeks to significantly increase fees for permanent and temporary work visas to subsidize the USCIS asylum program and fund the general overhaul of USCIS’ visa processing infrastructure. 

The good news is that fee hikes intend to expedite visa processing, eliminate the backlog, and hire additional adjudicators.  The other good news is that fee hikes will be used to reduce or eliminate asylum application fees for low-income seekers, including victims of human trafficking and other serious crimes.  The bad news is the burden for these two components is placed entirely on employers of foreign nationals.

USCIS relies on application fees rather than Congressional funding, and claims that employers are best suited to pay higher fees because they can afford it.  At the same time, USCIS notes that fees have not been adjusted since 2016.  However, the cost of applying for these visas will increase significantly.

EB and H-1B employers will be required to pay an addition $600 fee specifically for the asylum program on top of fee increases.  For H-1B applicants, the electronic registration fee will jump from just $10 to $215.  The full H-1B petition application fee will increase from $460 to $780, and THEN the additional $600 asylum fee will bring the total price tag to $1380.  This is an enormous burden to put on employers.

The EB-5 visa classification will make the largest jump from $3675 to $11,160 under the new rule, and the cost of applying to change temporary visa status to Green Card status will jump from $1225 to $1540.

If the rule goes into effect, it may impact the FY2024 H-1B visa filing period, and will certainly impact non-cap subject H-1B applicants in the coming year.  It is unclear whether it is legal for employers to be forced to subsidize the asylum program.  While USCIS traditionally relies on application fees, this may be a case in which Congressional funding is required.  We will follow the trajectory of this proposed rule over the coming months.

Sheila Danzig

Sheila Danzig is the director of CCI TheDegreePeople.com.  Sheila specializes in overturning RFEs and Denials for work visas.

Complex RFEs are a perennial issue facing H-1B applicants.  With the New Year right around the corner, it’s time for H-1B beneficiaries and their sponsors to start to work out the logistics of their cases.  This should include strategies to prevent complex RFEs. These occur when USCIS sees one red flag in a petition which triggers a scrutiny of the case that can snowball into problems across eligibility requirement areas.

At CCI The DegreePeople.com we work with complex RFEs every year, including the Nightmare RFE.  This RFE is an honest nightmare, calling all areas of eligibility into question.  It is virtually impossible to answer in the given timeframe by following its own instructions.  Every year, we get these RFEs overturned with over 90% consistency.

Here’s how:

We read through the RFE, then put it down and go back to the original eligibility requirements while taking USCIS approval trends into consideration. 

We work with our clients to help them collet supporting evidence and documentation regarding specialty occupation, wage level, and the employer-employee relationship.  Employer-employee relationship issues have become prominent H-1B hang-ups for consultants that work on a per-project basis or perform a significant amount of their work at third-party worksites.

In our response, we always include an expert opinion letter that addresses specialty occupation and wage level issues.  We always include a detailed credential evaluation that fills in any gaps between the education the H-1B beneficiary has an a US bachelor’s degree or higher in the exact field of the H-1B job.  This often includes a progressive work experience conversion in which three years of progressive work experience in the field of the H-1B job can be converted into the equivalent of one year of college credit in the major or the H-1B field. 

The best way to beat a Nightmare RFE is to prevent it.  All of our steps to answering this RFE can be taken when filing the initial petition to prevent the Nightmare RFE.  We are here to help in your case development process.  We can help you identify any potential red flags in your petition and strategize to include additional evidence and documentation to fill in any gaps in your case before you file.

For a free review of your case visit www.ccifree.com.  We will respond in 4 hours or less.

Sheila Danzig

Sheila Danzig is the director of CCI TheDegreePeople.com.  Sheila specializes in overturning RFEs and Denials for work visas.

When Meta laid off 13% of its work force this month, many of those 11,000 employees had their H-1B visas rendered invalid.  They now have two months to either find another job under H-1B status, apply for a different visa, or leave the country.  Some were traveling abroad at the time and cannot legally return to their homes in the United States.  Many have children enrolled in the U.S. education system and spouses who also work in the United States. 

The U.S. government has listed Meta as an H-1B dependent company, definitionally one with over 15% of its workforce being H-1B visa holders.  Nearly half of all Meta employees are Asian as of this year.  While Meta has not disclosed the specific number of H-1B visa holders impacted by layoff, hundreds have flocked to a WhatsApp group to help each other navigate this dilemma.  As part of their severance package, Meta offered an immigration support hotline, which has been slow to respond at best and non-responsive at worst.  

H-1B visa holders fired from Meta have a 60-day grace period to either find another H-1B eligible job, acquire a different visa, or return to their country of origin. 

Some laid off Meta employees face unique dangers in returning to their countries of origin after having worked for the social media giant.  For example, Facebook is banned in Russia and considered an extremist company.  Laid off Meta employees of Russian origin are under extreme pressure to find a way to remain in the United States or face untold consequences of their employment.  Many laid off Meta employees now face the stark possibility that they may have to return to dangerous countries.

Based on H-1B lottery numbers, there is still a massive demand for H-1B workers in STEM fields.  500,000 registrations were filed in this year’s H-1B lottery, only 85,000 of which were selected.  Since H-1B transfers are cap-exempt, this could be an auspicious opportunity for both H-1B visa holders and employers.  On the other hand, Meta is not the only major tech company that has implemented layoffs and hiring freezes for a variety of reasons.  LinkedIn and other professional networking platforms are now flooded with Meta employees scrambling to find work.  We will continue to follow the situation as it progresses.

Sheila Danzig

Sheila Danzig is the director of CCI TheDegreePeople.com.  Sheila specializes in overturning RFEs and Denials for work visas.

The opioid crisis in the United States continues to claim lives every day, and a primary culprit of the mortality rate of this crisis is fentanyl.  Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid 100 times more potent than morphine, classified as a Schedule II substance.  While it can be prescribed under close medical supervision to patients with severe pain following surgery and other limited circumstances, cartels have discovered that it is a cheap way to increase the bulk and potency of other illegal drugs regardless of deadly consequences.

According to the United States Drug Enforcement Agency, fentanyl is responsible for a 38.1% increase in overdose deaths involving opioids with nearly 90% of opioid overdose deaths linked to fentanyl in 2021 in the country. 

Two major shifts have occurred recently regarding how this substance is coming into the United States.  Originally, fentanyl was primarily entering the United States via post directly from China where fentanyl was being manufactured in clandestine labs.  The Chinese government cracked down on fentanyl manufacturing, so labs had to make a pivot.  Current, labs in China produce fentanyl precursor chemicals and ship them to Mexico.  From there, cartels manufacture fentanyl and recruit passenger vehicle and truck drivers to smuggle the substance into the United States. This is the first major shift. 

Originally, cartels were primarily moving fentanyl into the United States by adding it to other illicit drugs.  Now, they are manufacturing fentanyl pills and transporting these pills in large quantities across the border. 

Cartels recruit fentanyl mules who will draw the least amount of scrutiny at the least risky points of entry to move drugs across the border into the United States.  According to the DEA, fentanyl is most commonly transported across the US-Mexico border at official points of entry, concealed in compartments of passenger vehicles or interspersed with legitimate goods on tractor trailers driven by US citizens.  In 2021, seizures made at ports of entry accounted for 95% of all fentanyl seizures, with most of the remaining 5% found in cars driven by US citizens.  US Customs and Border Patrol reports that the rate of fentanyl seizure at ports of entry has skyrocketed. For example, in San Diego alone, the rate of fentanyl seizure has risen 323% in the past three years. 

There are two glaring themes:

First, the rate of fentanyl entering the United States has skyrocketed.

Second, fentanyl is primarily moving into the United States through controlled points of entry by US citizens.  In a six-month period, the US Customs and Border Patrol reported 89 seizures involving fentanyl.  Undocumented immigrants were only involved in three of these seizures.

Despite data to the contrary, the myth persists that undocumented immigrants and migrants seeking asylum are responsible for fentanyl overdose in the United States.  There is absolutely no data to support this theory.  A component of this myth is that the fentanyl smuggling spike has occurred due to open borders.  This is simply not true.  Seizures are occurring at strictly controlled points of entry, and the bulk of smugglers are US citizens, not foreign nationals.  Another argument is that border patrol agents are too busy chasing down illegal migrants to catch fentanyl smugglers.  If this were the case, the seizure rate would go down, not up with increased migration.

To effectively combat the opioid crisis and the deadly issue of fentanyl being smuggled into the United States, the solution needs to be data-driven, not fear-driven. 

Sheila Danzig

Sheila is the director of CCI TheDegreePeople.com.  Sheila specializes in overturning RFEs and Denials for work visas.

A perennial RFE issue for H-1B beneficiaries is mismatched education.  This is an easy trap to fall into, and one that you can fall into in multiple ways, occurring when the beneficiary’s education is anything but a bachelor’s degree or higher from a US accredited academic institution with a major that is an exact match for the H-1B job.  That means the following situations are red flags:

• US bachelor’s or higher degree in a different major
• Generalized US bachelor’s degree
• Degree earned outside of the United States
• Degree from an unaccredited institution
• Incomplete college
• No college.

Since there are many pathways through education – especially when it comes to highly skilled individuals – H-1B beneficiaries are likely to have deviated from the traditional course at some point.  It is up to your petition team to identify where these deviations are and address them before USCIS does.

Here is how:

Include a credential evaluation with your initial petition that fills in any gaps between the beneficiary’s education and a US degree in the exact major of the H-1B job.  This must be written to uniquely address the beneficiary’s education, training and work experience, as well as the job, H-1B eligibility requirements, and USCIS approval trends.  If a credential evaluation agencies does not ask about or mention all of these factors, look elsewhere.  If they are not responsive via your chosen method of communication, look elsewhere.  If they charge exorbitant fees and don’t offer affordable rush delivery options, look elsewhere.  These factors make it clear that they do not understand your situation.

Three years of progressive work experience in the field of the H-1B job can be converted into one year of college credit in that major.  This conversion must be written by a professor authorized to grant college credit for work experience.  With this strategy, alongside course credit, course content, and non-collegiate training and education, the right credential evaluation can show the beneficiary has the equivalency of the required degree in terms of US academic value.

At CCI TheDegreePeople.com we work with professors authorized to grant college credit for work experience.  We write every evaluation uniquely to fit the situation, we are dedicated to seamless communication, and are always affordable even at the last minute.

For a free review of your case visit www.ccifree.com.  We will respond in 4 hours or less.

Sheila Danzig

Sheila Danzig is the director of CCI TheDegreePeople.com.  Sheila specializes in overturning RFEs and Denials for work visas.

One glaring problem in an H-1B petition can quickly escalate into a complex, timely, and costly ordeal.  The Triple Threat RFE can be triggered when USCIS sees one red flag which leads to your petition being scrutinized until every little thing becomes an issue – or in this case wage level, specialty occupation and education. 

Answering a simple RFE is complicated enough given changing USCIS approval trends.  Having to rework three different areas of eligibility in one go can be daunting.  The trick is to rebuild your case from the ground up by going back to the basics.

First, tackle education.  Include a credential evaluation uniquely written for the job, the visa, and the beneficiary’s unique education and work experience.  When choosing the right credential evaluation agency, make sure they are easy to communicate with, and that they ask about all of the factors listed above.  If the job, the visa, the education, AND the work experience are not all taken into account, the evaluation will not properly fill in the gaps between the education the beneficiary has and the educational equivalency that USCIS needs to see to approve the visa.

Second, address specialty occupation and wage level with one expert opinion letter.  This expert must have extensive experience working in the field of the H-1B visa and preferably have held leadership roles in which they made hiring decisions regarding the beneficiary’s occupation and supporting positions.  Provide the expert with the specific duties of the job, the ad for the job showing the advanced degree requirement, and provide a breakdown of the factors that went into setting the wage level including previous employee work experience, prevailing wage data for the field and geographic location, etc.  One expert opinion letter can cover both issues.

At CCI TheDegreePeople.com, every credential evaluation is written to uniquely address the situation.  Every educational pathway is different so there are no cookie cutter solutions to proving academic equivalency.  We work with experts in all H-1B fields to provide expert opinion letters that USCIS will accept, and we offer affordable rush delivery options around the clock.

For a free review of your case visit www.ccifree.com.  We will respond in 4 hours or less.

Sheila Danzig

Sheila Danzig is the director of CCI TheDegreePeople.com.  Sheila specializes in overturning RFEs and Denials for work visas.

Earlier this year, USCIS announced that steps would be taken to increase visa processing efficiency, reduce wait times for petitioners, and generally reduce the overburdened legal immigration system.  As part of this plan, USCIS has committed to expanding eligibility for premium processing over the course of 2022 to include the following petitions:

• Additional Form I-140 petitions
• Form I-539 Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status
• Form I-765 Application for Employment Authorization.

Just earlier this month, USCIS initiated Phase III of the Premium Processing expansion plan, effective immediately.  This phase expanded premium processing eligibility to more Form I-140 petitioners whose petitions are currently pending:

• EB-1(c) Multinational Executive Manager Category – filed ON OR BEFORE January 1, 2022
• EB-2 National Interest Waiver – filed ON OR BEFORE February 2, 2022.

USCIS plans to continue expansion, eventually making all petitions under these two categories eligible for premium processing.  That means if you, or if your client or employee qualifies for one of these categories go for it!  If all goes according to plan, incrementally efficiency increases will ultimately reduce processing times for other I-140 petitions.

Processing times for EB-2 categories can still be years shorter than EB-3 categories, regardless of premium processing eligibility.  If you or if your employee or client may qualify for EB-2 rather than EB-3, we urge you to explore your options for eligibility in the EB-2 category.  At CCI TheDegreePeople.com we work with borderline cases every year.  We can spot EB-2 eligibility, and we can help you meet this category’s educational requirements. 

For a free review of your case, visit www.ccifree.com.  We will respond in four hours or less.

Sheila Danzig

Sheila Danzig is the director of CCI TheDegreePeople.com.  Sheila specializes in overturning RFEs and Denials for work visas.