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Credential Evaluation

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

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

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.]]>

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Everything You Need to Know About the H-1B Cap

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

Monday, April 2nd 2018 and is likely to only run through Friday, April 6th 2018. This is because once the number of petitions has exceeded the annual cap, CIS shuts its doors to more petitions. However, CIS must continue to accept petitions for five business days even if the cap is exceeded. In the last five years, the H-1B cap – including the 20,000 additional visa slots for beneficiaries with masters degrees or higher – was reached in the first five business days. Last year, CIS received about 199,000 during the five-day filing period. This filing period is for employment that begins on October 1st 2018, the start of the fiscal year 2019 that runs October 1st 2018 to September 30th 2019. If the start date is set for any earlier than October 1st 2018, the petition will be rejected. If the cap is exceeded, CIS runs a computer-generated random lottery to select which petitions will be considered for visa eligibility. That means, to ensure you or your client or employee has a shot at H-1B visa approval, you must:

  1. Be ready to file the petition on Monday April 2nd.
  2. Have an impeccable petition with all of the necessary forms, evidence, and documentation to ensure that once selected the petition will be approved.
If you miss this upcoming filing period, you will not be able to file again until April of 2019, and your employee will not be able to start work until October 1st, 2019. That means it’s time to get those petitions organized. For a free review of your case, or your client or employee’s case, visit ccifree.com.]]>

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H1B Alert: Don't Submit the Right Evaluation for the Wrong Visa

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

  • Did they ask about the visa?
  • Did they ask about the job?
  • Do they work with H1B cases and their RFEs on a regular basis?
    • The right evaluation agency for you case, or your client or employee’s case is the one that asks about the visa and the job, and works regularly with H1B cases and H1B RFE cases. At TheDegreePeople, we follow CIS approval trends, and work regularly with H1B cases and their RFEs. We know what triggers common RFEs, and we know how to prevent them. For a free review of your case, or your client or employee’s case, visit http://ccifree.com/.]]>

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    Is H1B the Right Filing for You? Find out NOW

    Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

    st is coming up fast, and it’s time to organize those H1B petitions. Before you begin the filing process, it’s important to know for certain that the candidate and the job meet H1B eligibility requirements. H1B requirements state that the job must require a minimum of a US bachelors degree or higher or its equivalent to perform, and the candidate must meet this educational standard in the field of the H1B job. That means you or your client or employee needs a US bachelors degree or higher or its equivalent in the correct field. Candidates with education from outside of the US, incomplete education, or complete education with a major in a field that doesn’t exactly match their H1B job get RFEs without taking precautionary measures in the initial petition. Last year, we saw a spike in occupational RFEs where computer programmers at level 1 wages were targeted for lacking in specialization. This year, before you file, make sure that the requirements are met, and that you have the additional documentation and evidence needed to prevent any RFEs you or your employee or client may be susceptible to given their circumstance. There are two factors to take into consideration when determining H1B eligibility: 1. The Occupation Does the beneficiary’s occupation meet H1B requirements? To qualify, it must require a minimum of a US bachelors degree or higher or its equivalent to carry out the complex duties of the job. To prove this, you will need to clearly show that this educational requirement is the standard for the industry, meaning that similar jobs in the industry at similar companies also have this minimum educational requirement. If this job is uniquely complex, you will have to clearly show how its duties require an unusual level of specialization. If you or your employee or client is a computer programmer at level 1 wages, you will need to include an expert opinion letter that explains how wage levels work in this instance – that level 1 wages does not mean the job is an entry-level position – and a detailed description of the job’s duties showing that a minimum of a US bachelors degree or its equivalent is needed. 2. The Education The beneficiary needs to have a US bachelors degree or higher or its equivalent in the exact field of the H1B job to get approved without an RFE. If you or your employee or client has a degree from outside of the US, a degree with a major that doesn’t match the job exactly, a generalized degree, or no completed degree, you will need to submit a credential evaluation along with the petition that fills in the missing gaps. This evaluation must be tailored to the beneficiary’s unique situation that takes their pathway through education, the job, and the visa requirements into consideration alongside CIS approval trends, graduate program and university admissions precedents, international trade agreements regarding educational portability, international education, and a whole host of other factors. If you talk to an agency and they don’t ask about the job or visa, look elsewhere, because without this information the right evaluation cannot be written. However, before you go through the process of ordering the evaluation and organizing the petition, you need to make sure you have, or your employee or client has the progressive work experience, external training, and academic course content to meet CIS educational requirements. For a free review of your case, visit ccifree.com and submit the educational documents and resume, and indicate the job in question. We will get back to you in 48 hours or less with a full analysis, whether or not the beneficiary can meet CIS educational requirements, and if so what is needed to be done to meet these requirements clearly.]]>

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    H1B RFE Survival Guide For FY 2019

    Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

    st and August 31st, CIS issued 85,000 RFEs, which is a 45% increase from that same period of time in 2016. Going into this filing season starting Monday April 2nd, 2018 for FY 2019, we’re still anticipating the cap will be exceeded quickly and there will be an H1B lottery, and we’re anticipating a high volume of RFEs. To make sure your petition, or your client or employee’s petition gets into the H1B lottery, it MUST be filed between April 2nd and April 6th, 2018. As you prepare the petition, it’s important to keep in mind common RFEs from last year so you can take measures to prevent them this year. Last year, CIS issued an unprecedented number of RFEs regarding wages levels and occupational specialization. Here’s how it breaks down: First, H1B eligibility requires beneficiaries to be paid the prevailing wages and benefits for that position in companies in that industry of that size, and in that geographic location. Last year, a common RFE claimed that the wage level for the job in question was set too low, based on the complexity and specialization of the duties of the job. Second, for a job to be eligible for H1B, it must require a minimum of a US bachelors degree or its equivalent or higher. CIS issued an unprecedented number of Level 1 Wages RFEs last year claiming that the wage level indicates the job is entry-level. This becomes a problem when entry-level positions in the industry, or the job in question don’t meet the minimum H1B educational requirements. Before you file, make sure the beneficiary is being paid the prevailing wage for their H1B job. If the job is set at Level 1 Wages, but the position is not entry-level and does meet CIS educational requirements, you will need to include an expert opinion letter and additional documentation in the petition that states why the job and the wages still meet H1B requirements. We can help. Visit ccifree.com/ for a free review of your case.]]>

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    Case Study: Preempting the Indian Three-Year Bachelors Degree RFE

    Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals


    CIS will not accept that Indian three-year bachelors degree as the equivalent of a US four-year bachelors degree. Yes, US graduate programs do. Yes, international trade agreements do. Yes, there are an equivalent if not greater number of credit hours in the Indian three-year bachelors degree as the US four-year degree. None of this matters when it comes to getting your visa, or your employee or client’s visa approved because CIS is hung up on the missing fourth year.

    When you file the H1B petition, you need to make sure it includes a credential evaluation that converts years of progressive work experience into college credit to account for the missing fourth year of education. This is the only way we’ve seen beneficiaries with this degree successfully answer and avoid these RFEs. Three years of progressive work experience can be converted into one full year of college credit in that field with a credential evaluation written by a professor with the authority to grant college credit for work experience. In this work, you or your employee or client must have taken on progressively more responsibility with duties of increasing specialization and complexity, indicating that the work experience was educational as well.

    Make sure you have, or your employee or client has the right kind of work experience, and enough of it, to account for the missing fourth year of college education. Visit ccifree.com/ and attach the beneficiary’s resume and educational documents, and indicate the job in question. We will get back to you within 48 hours with a full analysis and our recommendations.]]>

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    Prepare for Tough RFEs for Specialty Occupation this H1B Season

    Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

    ccifree.com/ or simply reply to this email for a no cost and no obligation full review of your case, or your client or employee’s case. At TheDegreePeople.com, we work with RFEs every year. We know what triggers them, and we know how to answer them, and most importantly, we know how to prevent them. We will review the entire case, and get back to you within 48 hours with a full analysis, pre-evaluation, and our recommendations moving forward.]]>

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