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Case Study: Specialty Occupation H1B RFE for Engineer – Overturned!

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

While specialty occupation RFEs are nothing new, starting in the 2017 H1B cap season we saw a dramatic increase in such RFEs.  This coming year, there may not be many RFEs at all because USCIS adjudicators have been given license to deny petitions outright.

To qualify for H1B status a job must require a minimum of a US bachelor’s degree or higher or its equivalent to enter the position, and the job must entail utilizing highly specialized knowledge to perform the duties of the job.  In past years, jobs like physician or engineer were not called into question.  This past year, even jobs that were once considered clearly specialized were called into question and unsuspecting beneficiaries suddenly had to defend themselves.

One such client came to TheDegreePeople with a specialty occupation RFE for the job of engineer.  In 2017, software developers came under fire with specialty occupation RFEs.  Many employers responded the following year by redefining the job as an engineer.  This is part of the reason the job of engineer was hit with specialty occupation RFEs in 2018, but only part of the bigger picture that CIS approval trends change every year and are difficult to predict.

To address this letter, one of our experts in the field of engineering wrote a third-party expert opinion letter explaining why our client’s particular job met specialty occupation requirements both in line with the industry standard and with the employer’s hiring practices.  This letter accompanied a detailed breakdown of the duties and responsibilities of the position, documentation of industry standard through the ad for the job and ads for the same position in the industry for similar companies, and so forth, to tie it all together.  The RFE was overturned and his visa was approved.

Active now the new USCIS memorandum gives adjudicators the authority to deny H1B petitions without issuing an RFE to clear up any concerns.  This means it is essential to anticipate any issues before they arise.  At TheDegreePeople.com we work with RFEs, Denials, and difficult cases every year.  We know what is likely to trigger an RFE and we know how to overturn them.  Let us review your case, identify issues, and make a plan to fill in the evidentiary gaps before you file.  For a free consultation, visit ccifree.com.  We will get back to you in 48 hours or less.

Case Study: Specialty Occupation H1B RFE for Engineer – Overturned! Read More »

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

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

The H-1B visa is the most competitive US work visa and the H-1B cap for FY 2019 opens in just a few weeks.

This year, USCIS opens its doors to H-1B petitions on Monday, April 2nd 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.

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

Avoid That RFE! No Charge Analysis of Any Case

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

Before you file, let us review your case. At TheDegreePeople, we work with difficult cases and RFEs every year. We know what triggers RFEs and we know how to respond to them. We also know when to spot when a case is vulnerable and how to prevent getting an RFE in the first place.

Last year, we saw an unprecedented number of specialty occupation RFEs targeting beneficiaries at Level 1 Wages, particularly computer programmers. If your client or employee is a computer programmer making Level 1 Wages, do not file without a review of your client’s case, a detailed job description, and an expert opinion letter explaining why the job meets H-1B specialization requirements even though it is at Level 1 Wages.

There are also a handful of situations that trigger an education RFE, including having a three-year bachelors degree, an incomplete degree or no college credit at all, a degree with a major that is generalized or not an exact match for the job, and foreign credentials without an evaluation. If your client or employee has anything but a US bachelors degree or higher with a major that exactly matches the H-1B job, you will need a detailed credential evaluation written with regards to the job, H-1B educational requirements, and CIS approval trends.

It’s always better to prevent an RFE in the first place than to have to answer one later. Visit ccifree.com for a free review of your employee or client’s case at no charge and no obligation.

Avoid That RFE! No Charge Analysis of Any Case Read More »

3 H-1B Details to Remember This Week

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

Several details often get overlooked. The best outcome in these cases is the petitioner will receive an RFE response requesting more information. Worst case scenario, your petition gets rejected outright. Even with an RFE, the USCIS views that particular response as a much-needed red flag to get through the massive pile of petitions they have to go through each year. There are only 65,000 visas available annually and last year the USCIS found themselves rummaging through nearly 200,000 petitions.

They’re looking for an excuse to reject yours. Don’t give them one.

Three details to remember before you pop your petition in the mail:

  1. Use a blue pen. You’re going to be submitting original documents and copies of original documents. You’ll have signatures – both of your own and others – from the past and present, sometimes even on the same document. The USCIS worker needs to be able to clearly tell the difference between original signatures and recent signatures. Use a blue pen for new signatures. Make everyone’s life easier.
  2. Double and triple-check for consistency. Is your name spelled the same on every document? If you have a nickname or your name is hard to spell, it’s particularly important that you double and triple-check for this. It’s alarming how many RFE’s are issued simply to check what the petitioner’s name actually is. On the same note, you want to make sure that all of the other information on all of the forms you’ve submitted is consistent.
  3. If you need a credential evaluation, get one! If your degree is from a country that is not the United States, you need a credential evaluation and you need to submit it along with the rest of your petition. The only way to show the person evaluating your petition the value of your foreign degree is with a detailed evaluation from an authorized credential evaluation agency. This is because academic standards and structures vary from country to country, much like currency. The value is not always clear, but someone who understands exchange rates can get you what you need.

At CCI we have international education experts on call twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. We have rush delivery services available to get your credential evaluation into your hands when you need it. Call or text us anytime at 1.800.771.4723, send us an email, or visit us online at http://www.ccifree.com/?CodeBLG/ for a consultation. We can figure out what you need to complete your H-1B petition and get it to you in time to file on April First.

3 H-1B Details to Remember This Week Read More »

Ten Leading H-1B Visa Users Outsource Overseas Job Opportunities. US Firms Use This to Criticize H1B Process.

Press

This statement also reveals the fact that H-1B visas help in the transfer of skilled jobs in the US, which are the highest paying, to different countries. The president of the IEEE-US (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers-USA) asserted that the Congress should only pass those regulations that would help in the creation of new jobs in the US rather than those which would decrease the existing job applicant’s prospects. What it seems they are missing is the fact that we need the most qualified people for the jobs regardless of what country they are from.
Ron Hira, a professor of Public Policy at the Rochester Institute of Technology, emphasized the fact that Congress could not fill in the gaps in the preliminary H-1B visa scheme. He claims that this resulted in a decrease in job opportunities as well as the reduction in salaries of the highly skilled workers in the US. Others believe that when two things happened at the same time it does not mean one caused the other. We at CCI (www.TheDegreePeople.com/) urge that further investigation of the facts must be done before asking Congress to act on this matter.
The leading H-1B users got 40,170 H-1B visas during the financial year of 2012 and applied only for 1,167 green cards, which were based on their particular jobs. These kinds of visas let immigrants to initiate their own firms that would definitely result in the creation of US job opportunities and eventually wealth. It is important to understand that the Green Card process is very long and slow and the difference in numbers are caused by many different factors such as retrogression and the EB2 education requirements.
Apter stated that any kind of scheme, which is related to enhancement in the skilled immigration, has to be based on green cards. CCI agrees that the Green Card process must be streamlined so that there is a clear path from the H1b to the Green Card.

Ten Leading H-1B Visa Users Outsource Overseas Job Opportunities. US Firms Use This to Criticize H1B Process. Read More »

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