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Case Study: EB-2 Education RFE – Overturned!

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

If you or your employee or client is applying for an EB-2 green card, their situation must meet two requirements:

  1. They must have been hired for a job that requires a US master’s degree or higher, or a US bachelor’s degree or its equivalent FOLLOWED BY at least five years of progressive work experience in the field.
  2. They must have the education required for the EB-2 qualified job or exceptional ability as clearly proven with a National Interest Waiver.

One of the most common RFEs EB-2 candidates run into is an education issue RFE.  Our client came to us with an Indian three-year bachelor’s degree, many years of progressive work experience, and an RFE.  He had the years of experience to more than cover the five years of progressive work experience following having earned the bachelor’s degree.  The issue arose because with EB-2 educational requirements the bachelor’s degree is required to be a SINGLE SOURCE and CIS does not accept that the Indian three-year degree is the equivalent of the US four-year bachelor’s degree regardless of the number of classroom contact hours.  CIS requires the missing fourth year to be accounted for.

With other visas, like H-1B, our client could have included a work experience conversion that converts three years of progressive work experience in a given field of specialization into one year of college education towards that degree to account for the missing year.  This does not work for EB-2 because that would not meet the equivalency requirement of a single source bachelor’s degree.

Our solution was to write a credential evaluation fortified by CIS approval precedents and federal case law that took twelve years of our client’s progressive work experience in the field and converted it into the equivalent of a US bachelor’s degree in the field.  Then, the next five years of work experience were included to meet EB-2 educational standards requiring a single source US bachelor’s degree FOLLOWED BY five years of work experience in the field.  The RFE was overturned.

If you or your employee or client is facing an education RFE for EB-2, let us help you.  Even the candidate doesn’t have the years to cover a complete work experience conversion, there are other ways to address the equivalency issue through detailed credential evaluations tailored to your or your employee or client’s unique situation, and through expert opinion letters and National Interest Waiver options.  Let us review your case for free.  Visit ccifree.com.  We will respond in 48 hours or less.

Case Study: EB-2 Education RFE – Overturned! Read More »

I-140 Problems: Common RFE Triggers and their Solutions

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

In light of the new USCIS policy memorandum, adjudicators now have the discretion to deny a petition without first issuing and RFE or NOID for all visas, and this includes visas that require a Form I-140.

While the new memorandum can feel like a reason to be nervous because we don’t know how this law on the books will play out in practice, it actually changes very little in how beneficiaries and their teams should approach the process.  That means looking at common places where applicants run into problems and then taking steps to prevent running into them.

If you or your employee or client’s education or job don’t clearly meet the educational standards of the classification chosen in Part 2 of Form I-140, you need to make sure to provide the evidence and documentation you need to fill in the gaps between the requirements and you or your employee or client’s situation.  Incomplete college, education attained outside of the United States, or no formal education are all situations that require a detailed credential evaluation that takes the specific educational requirements of the visa and the classification into consideration.  If an evaluation agency does not ask about the job or the visa before you order, look elsewhere. 

Before you file, make sure all answers on the PERM and on Form I-140 are consistent.  Inconsistencies will trigger an RFE, even if it is just a spelling error.  If there are changes needed, make sure to check yes for Part 4 Item 7 on the Form I-140.  Place a bright sheet of paper directly beneath Form I-140 that states this is an amended petition and the PERM has already been submitted and include the receipt number for the PERM.  This way, inconsistencies will be accompanied with a clear explanation.  CIS may inquire anyway – there are never any guarantees with CIS – but this will be much less likely and if you do receive an RFE you will be ready.

At TheDegreePeople we work with I-140 RFEs every year and understand CIS approval trends and what triggers RFEs.  This year, you may not get a chance to fortify your case with an RFE.  Before you file, let us review your case and identify where in the petition an RFE is likely to be triggered so you can accommodate accordingly.  For a free review of your case visit ccifree.com/.  We will get back to you in 48 hours or less.

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I-140 Prevention and Solutions

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

Form I-140 is a frustrating place to run into trouble for education-based visa beneficiaries and their sponsors. With the rising prevalence of RFEs for visas of all types, it is far from rare for applicants to get through the PERM phase only to receive an RFE for Form I-140.

If you, or your employee or receives an RFE on Form I-140, don’t panic. While this is a bump in the road, it is also an opportunity to strengthen the case so long as you understand what CIS is looking for. In these three common Form I-140 RFEs, the key to success is understanding where evidence and consistency was lacking, and how to fix it to get that visa approved.

Position indicated on Form I-140 fit the category indicated in Part 2.

Part 2 is where you must indicate the visa classification. This is based on what credentials are required as minimum requirements for entry into the position. You must choose a classification, and you must ONLY choose one. Applicants selecting the EB2 category tend to run into the most trouble here. The EB2 category requires the position and the beneficiary to hold a minimum of a US Master’s degree in the field, or a Bachelor’s degree in the field FOLLOWED BY five years of progressive work experience, or its equivalent. Since EB2 processing time is much faster than the EB3 classification, beneficiaries and their sponsors have incentive to try to make the position – and the candidate – fit into the wrong category. Oftentimes, the positiondoes fit into the EB2 classification, but sufficient evidence and expert analysis is lacking, and this is what you need to provide in your RFE response.

Answers between the PERM and Form I-140 are inconsistent.

Inconsistent answers between forms are a surefire way to trigger an RFE. Make sure answers are consistent in their content and in their spelling between forms. If there are amendments, make sure to check yes for Part 4, Item 7 accompanied by an attached explanation of any changes made on a bright colored sheet placed directly beneath Form I-140. Write that the PERM has already been submitted and that this is an amended petition. Include the receipt number for the PERM. This way, inconsistencies between the PERM and I-140 will be clearly explained to CIS and they will not have to ask inquire about it. Sometimes they will anyway, but you will have already strengthened your case with the amendment and this will help you greatly in an RFE arrives.

The petition did not include a credential evaluation or included the WRONG credential evaluation.

If the beneficiary’s degree or degrees were earned outside of the United States, a credential evaluation will be needed to clearly show the educational value of the degree in question by US educational standards. If the degree does not match the field of employ, or if there is incomplete college – or no college, but a lot of work experience in the field – a credential evaluation will be needed to close any gaps between the education the beneficiary has, and the education the beneficiary needs to meet the educational requirements of the category indicated in Part 2 of Form I-140. If a credential evaluation is not included and the beneficiary has anything but a straightforward degree earned in the US in the exact field of the job in question, it will likely trigger an RFE. Choosing the right credential evaluator is essential because educational requirements when it comes to equivalencies differ between visas. If the evaluator doesn’t ask about your, or your employee or client’s job or visa, look elsewhere. The agency should not rely solely on online equivalency databases, but rather have their own updated reference library that includes CIS approval precedents, federal caselaw, and international trade agreements regarding employment and education portability.

At TheDegreePeople, we have experts in every field on hand to write expert opinion letters to strengthen your case, or your employee or client’s case, and evaluators with extensive experience in international education, college and graduate program admissions, and working with Form I-140 cases and their RFEs.

For a free review of your case, visit ccifree.com/. We will get back to you in 48 hours or less.

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Right Degree, Wrong Major: How to Avoid an EB2 Education RFE

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

Green card beneficiaries seeking EB2 status need to either hold a US master’s degree or a US bachelor’s degree followed by five years of progressive work experience, or the equivalency of one of these requirements.

What if you, or your employee or client holds a degree with a major in a field related to the EB2 job? Employers will often hire workers with degrees in related fields because there is enough skill and knowledge overlap to ensure the worker will be able to perform the duties of the job. Then, CIS will not approve the visa.

In recent years, CIS has tightened its approval standards, only approving beneficiaries with degree specializations that exactly match the job title on the PERM. If you, or your employee or client has a degree in a related field that doesn’t exactly match the EB2 job, you need to include a credential evaluation with the petition that meets equivalency requirements by specific EB2 standards.

This is where the second problem arises: for EB2, the bachelor’s degree must be a single source. That means you must, or your employee or client must either have a US bachelor’s degree in the exact field of the EB2 job, or enough years of progressive work experience to account for the entire degree equivalency. That’s twelve years of progressive work experience because a professor with the authority to grant college credit for work experience can convert three years or work experience in the field into one year of college credit.

At TheDegreePeople, we have developed several creative strategies to address degree equivalencies for EB2 to prevent the mismatched education RFE from years of working with EB2 cases and their RFEs. For a free review of your case, or your client or employee’s case, visit ccifree.com.

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Common EB2 Education RFEs and How to Preempt Them

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

To meet EB2 requirements and CIS approval trends, a beneficiary must hold a US masters degree or higher or its foreign equivalent, OR a US bachelors degree or its equivalent FOLLOWED BY at least five years of work experience in the field that matches the EB2 job. The education must be an exact match for the job, and the job must hold these minimum educational requirements.

That means if your client has a degree from outside of the United States, incomplete education, or a degree in a field that doesn’t match the job title, they will need a credential evaluation that fills in the gaps between their education and EB2 educational requirements.

However, different visas have different requirements for evaluating equivalencies. For example, let’s say a beneficiary is petitioning for H-1B status with an Indian three-year bachelors degree. CIS needs them to account for the missing fourth year to meet their approval trend for the equivalency of a US four-year bachelors degree. With H-1B, the candidate could have three years of progressive work experience converted into one year of college credit in a credential evaluation, which would account for the missing fourth year and CIS would accept that.

With EB2, this would not work because the bachelors degree must be a SINGLE SOURCE. That means, if you have, or your employee or client has that same Indian three-year degree, you cannot simply add work experience until you get four years. The best option is to try for the masters degree equivalency. This gets complicated when you take sequence into account concerning the bachelors degree equivalency.

Since the wait period for EB2 is so much shorter than EB3, it can be enticing to try to apply for the Green Card under EB2 and make the education work. This works sometimes if the beneficiary has the right education, enough work experience, and the sequence of education and work experience works for the EB2 academic puzzle. You don’t want to take chances. If you think you meet, or your employee or client meets EB2 education requirements, visit ccifree.com.

We will get back to your in 48 hours or less about whether or not EB2 educational requirements can be met. Often, all that is needed is the right credential evaluation that takes the beneficiary’s education and work experience, the job in question, specific EB2 requirements, and CIS approval trends into account to get that EB2 petition approved.

Common EB2 Education RFEs and How to Preempt Them Read More »

Mismatched Education EB2 RFE – Triggers and Solutions

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

Employers will hire workers who meet the degree requirement in a related field because there is enough overlap in specialized skills and knowledge to do a quality job. However, none of this matters to CIS. Over the past seven or eight years, CIS has been issuing RFEs for beneficiaries with degrees in related fields because they are not an exact match to the job title on the PERM.

While this detail may not stop the new hire from performing their job excellently, it will get in the way of CIS approving their visa, and the bottom line is CIS gets their way.

The best way to address this RFE is to avoid it in the first place. Here’s how:

When you file the beneficiary’s EB2 petition, make sure to include a credential evaluation that takes EB2 educational standards, the job, and CIS approval trends into consideration. The right credential evaluation is written by an agency that works regularly with EB2 cases and their RFEs, keeps up to date on CIS approval trends, international trade agreements, and federal case law, and has an in-depth understanding of education internationally. When it comes to EB2, the bachelors degree must be a single source. That means that a creative approach is often needed that requires in-depth understanding of international education. Sometimes a work experience conversion is needed, other times writing a functional equivalency works best. It all depends on the beneficiary’s education and resume, and on the job in question.

If your education, or if your employee or client’s education is not an EXACT match for the job title on the perm, let us help you. Visit ccifree.com and submit the beneficiary’s educational documents and resume, and indicate the job in question. We will get back to you in 48 hours or less with our recommendations on what needs to be included in the evaluation you, or your client or employee needs to meet EB2 educational requirements.

Mismatched Education EB2 RFE – Triggers and Solutions Read More »

Source & Sequence: Get Your EB2 Education Right

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

Every visa that leans heavily on education has different requirements, especially when it comes to equivalencies for education completed outside of the United States. The EB2 visa in particular is fraught with notorious education traps.

Before you file, make sure you, or your employee or client’s education checks out or you’ll end up with an RFE at best, instead of that approval.

The two big components of EB2 education to keep in mind and source and sequence. Candidates eligible for EB2 status have earned a US Masters degree or higher or its foreign equivalent, or have completed a US Bachelor’s degree or its equivalent followed by at least five years of progressive work experience in the field. Sounds simple enough, right? Not when it comes to equivalencies.

If you, or your employee or client has a degree from outside of the United States, or has a degree in a specialization that does not match the field of occupation, you will need to include a credential evaluation that fills in the gaps. Often, this includes converting progressive years of work experience in the field to years of college credit.

Remember, source and sequence are crucial. Consider, for example, you have, or your employee or client has an Indian three-year degree. You will need to account for the missing fourth year of education for CIS approval. Three years of progressive work experience in the field can be converted into the equivalent for one year of college credit towards that major. This also comes in handy when the degree specialization and job are mismatched. While other visas like H-1B will let you combine the three years of education, or education completed in the wrong major, with years of progressive work experience to meet equivalency and specialization requirements, that’s not how it works for EB2.

With EB2, the Bachelors degree must be a SINGLE SOURCE. This means your client will either need a US Bachelors or Masters degree in the exact field of the EB2 job, or a whole lot of progressive work experience.

The second component to remember is sequence. If you, or your employee or client holds a Bachelors degree or its single source equivalent, they will need an additional five years of progressive work experience, and this work experience must have occurred AFTER the Bachelors degree or its equivalency was earned. This shows that a Bachelors degree or its equivalent was a MINIMUM requirement for the following five years of work experience.

If you have any questions regarding your EB2 education, or your employee or client’s EB2 education, don’t let them go unanswered. Visit ccifree.com for a no charge and no obligation review of the. We will get back to you in 48 hours or less with a full analysis, pre-evaluation, and our recommendations.

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Your Best Solution to the EB2 Education Puzzle

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

For other visas, as well as for entrance to graduate programs in the US, candidates can combine education with work experience to meet equivalency requirements for a US Bachelors degree. This is not the case for EB2.

If you or your employee or client does not have the education or work experience to meet EB2 education requirements right off the bat, they may still qualify for this classification. There are ways a credential evaluator with in-depth understanding of CIS precedents, federal case law, international education, and international trade agreements can write the evaluation needed to get the visa approved. However, this is NOT a judgment call you can make on your own.

Your best solution to the EB2 education puzzle is to ask for help.

Before you get too far on the petition, let us review the case. Simply go to ccifree.com and submit the candidate’s educational documents and a current, accurate resume, along with the job and desired educational equivalency. We will get back to you within 24 hours with a pre-evaluation and full analysis, and consult with you on your options.

Sheila Danzig

Sheila Danzig is the Executive Director of TheDegreePeople.com a Foreign Credentials Evaluation Agency. For a no charge analysis of any difficult case, RFE, Denial, or NOID, please go to http://www.ccifree.com/ or call 800.771.4723.

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Avoid that EB2 RFE: Sidestep Education Traps

Credential Evaluation, Visa Approvals

  • Mismatched Education
    • If the candidate’s degree is in a field that is not an exact fit for the job offer on the PERM, you can expect an RFE at best. This is a major EB2 education trap because employers will hire candidates with degrees in related fields and work experience in the field, but CIS will not approve their visas. If this is your situation, or your employee or client’s situation, you will need a very detailed and specific credential evaluation to write the US academic equivalency of the right degree in the right specialization. CIS has very strict requirements about how you can meet these equivalency requirements when it comes to EB2. Talk to a credential evaluator to see if you can make this equivalency work with your, or your employee or client’s education and work experience. The answer may be no. If this is the case, don’t be tempted to pull one over on CIS. This will not work.
    1. Bachelor’s Degree Equivalency is not a Single Source
    EB2 education requirements state that to qualify a candidate must hold a US bachelor’s degree FOLLOWED BY at least five years of progressive work experience in the field, OR a US Master’s degree or higher in the field. If you or your employee or client has a bachelor’s degree from outside of the United States, or a US degree in the wrong field, you will need an equivalency that is a SINGLE SOURCE. CIS accepts three years of progressive work experience in the field as the equivalent of one year of US college credit towards a degree in that specialization. Likewise, following having earned a bachelor’s degree, CIS counts fives years of progressive work experience in your client’s field of employ as the equivalent of a US Master’s degree in the field provided that a bachelor’s degree was a minimum requirement for the job itself. This gets tricky real fast. We always recommend taking your or your employee or client’s education and a current, accurate resume to a credential evaluation agency that works regularly with EB2 visas and their RFEs, and that also works with college professors with the authority to grant college credit for work experience. Your will need to have the work experience necessary to provide a SINGLE SOURCE bachelor’s degree equivalency. This requirement is complex and requires expertise to determine whether you or your employee or client can qualify, and to provide the evidence, analysis, and documentation necessary to explain this to CIS in the petition.
    1. Poorly Translated Documents
    Candidates fall into EB2 education traps when they provide mistranslated or misevaluated documents. Some degrees simply don’t translate into English and retain their academic value. Some translation agencies have begun to provide evaluation services that are attractive to candidates wanting to save time and money. However, evaluation is a completely different, highly specialized service because of the complex nature of foreign academic differentiations and the fact that degrees with the same name hold different academic values between countries. Some degrees with different names hold the same equivalency. For example, Indian Chartered Accountancy is the foreign equivalent of a US bachelor’s degree in Accounting while the Canadian Chartered Accountancy and US CPA are not the equivalent of that advanced degree. This sort of problem comes up when academic value gets lost in translation, or when a translator takes credential evaluation liberties without the knowledge to assure accuracy. To sidestep this EB2 education trap, if your or your employee or client’s educational documents need to be translated and evaluated, make this a two-step process. Do NOT compromise on this. You would never take credentials to an evaluation agency for translation! Get them translated into English first, then take them to a credential evaluation agency. Agencies that work regularly with EB2 visas can identify common translation errors and make academic value judgments accordingly. To avoid these EB2 education traps, simply visit ccifree.com and attach all educational documents and a current, accurate resume, along with the job title. We will get back to you within 24 hours with a pre-evaluation of your case, or your employee or client’s case, and a full analysis of all of your options. About the Author Sheila Danzig Sheila Danzig is the Executive Director of TheDegreePeople.com a Foreign Credentials Evaluation Agency. For a no charge analysis of any difficult case, RFE, Denial, or NOID, please go to http://www.ccifree.com/ or call 800.771.4723.]]>

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    2017 EB2 Education Trends You Need to Know About

    Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

    The Degree must EXACTLY fit the job title on the PERM One common mistake in EB2 filing occurs when a candidate’s education does not exactly match the job title on the PERM. In the past, CIS has allowed candidates with degrees in fields related to their job to have their visas approved, but educational standards have tightened. This means if you have, or if your employee or client has a degree in a field that doesn’t exactly fit the field of employ, you cannot simply file as is. EB2 occupations are highly specialized, and you need to clearly show CIS that you have, or your employee or client has the precise skills and knowledge necessary to excel at the job. This means having education specialized to the profession. If this is you situation, or your employee or client’s situation, have a credential evaluator with experience working with EB2 petitions review the education and work experience. With the proper conversions, documentation, and citations, you may be able to get the evaluation needed to account for the proper degree specialization. The Bachelor’s Degree must be a SINGLE SOURCE If the bachelor’s or master’s degree is not an exact match for the job title on the PERM, or if you or your employee or client has a three-year bachelor’s degree, or anything other than a straightforward US education that fits the field of employ, DO NOT file without a credential evaluation. The purpose of this is to explain that the candidate holds the educational value equivalency of the education required by CIS to meet EB2 eligibility requirements. However, this leads into another common problem EB2 candidates face: the bachelor’s degree must be a SINGLE SOURCE. Unlike other visas, you cannot combine work experience and college credit to make the bachelor’s degree or master’s degree equivalency in the correct specialization. However, CIS does accept a work experience conversion of ONLY years of work experience in the field into enough years of college credit to meet CIS requirements for bachelor’s degree equivalency. Talk to a credential evaluator with the authority to convert years of work experience into college credit to see if you have, or your employee or client has the background necessary for this solution. EB2 processing time is years shorter than the time it takes to process EB3 petitions. For this reason, candidates are tempted to try to meet EB2 requirements even if they do not. DO NOT BE TEMPTED BY THIS. It is a waste of time. However, if the EB2 educational requirements can be met, definitely take advantage of this. Before you file, have a credential evaluator with extensive experience working with EB2 cases and EB2 RFEs review your case, or your employee or client’s case and see if you can clearly meet the requirements for this visa. If the education and work experiences fit, congratulations! Go for it. About the Author   Sheila Danzig Sheila Danzig is the Executive Director of TheDegreePeople.com a Foreign Credentials Evaluation Agency. For a no charge analysis of any difficult case, RFE, Denial, or NOID, please go to http://www.ccifree.com/ or call 800.771.4723.  ]]>

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