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Prevailing Wage: How to Address the H1B Wage Level Issue RFE

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

To meet H1B requirements, the employer must pay the H1B employee the prevailing wage for the position in that industry for companies of that size in that geographical location. Last year, we saw jobs with Level 1 Wages targeted both questioning the wage level and whether the job meets H1B specialization requirements.

But what if the prevailing wage level for the specialty occupation in question is level one?

First, regardless of the job in question, you have to be very familiar with the position’s entry in the US Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook. If the job is set at wage level one, it is likely CIS will assume it’s an entry level position. Some entry level positions do not require the advanced degree that H1B status demands – a US bachelors degree or higher or its equivalent.

If the entry level position requires anything lower than a US bachelor’s degree as a minimum qualification – even if the job itself isn’t entry-level – you will run into trouble.

To address this wage level issue, you will need to include a detailed breakdown of the position’s duties and responsibilities. Include the ad for the job and past hiring practices that clearly show the minimum requirement of a US bachelors degree for entry into the position. You should also include a detailed analysis of all of the factors that went into determining the wage level for the job and tie it all together with an expert opinion letter to fortify your case.

This is just one of many wage level issue RFEs coming in this year. CIS may take issue with the job at any wage level. The important thing to remember about wage level RFEs is that they are inextricably linked with specialty occupation issues, so it’s best to address both issues with the same response. In your expert opinion letter, both topics should be covered.

To meet H1B requirements for specialty occupation, the job must require a minimum of a US bachelor’s degree or higher or its equivalent for entry into the position. If this is a requirement for the specific job in question but not as an industry standard as indicated in the Occupational Outlook Handbook, you will need to provide a detailed job description that clearly shows the duties and responsibilities of the job require a specialized knowledge base and skill set. You will also need to document past hiring practices to show this position always requires an advanced degree for this particular business. If the Occupational Outlook Handbook states that sometimes employers will hire for this position with lower minimum educational requirements, provide ads for the same position in similar companies in the industry to show that the lower minimum educational requirement is the exception, not the rule. Regardless of your situation, the expert opinion letter must be included for analysis and fortification of your case.

At TheDegreePeople.com we have experts on hand 24/7 in all industries and areas of expertise to write the opinion letter you need, or your employee or client needs to get that H1B visa approved. For a free consultation visit ccifree.com/?CodeLWA/. We will get back to you in 48 hours or less.

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Back to the Basics: How to Answer a Difficult H1B RFE

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

Ten years ago, receiving an H1B RFE was a relatively rare occurrence. Today, H1B applicants have about a one in three chance of getting an RFE instead of an approval.

What does this mean for FY 2019 H1B beneficiaries? There is a strong chance the petition will receive an RFE. This does not mean the end of the case, it’s a chance to fortify the case for approval. If you, or your employee or client receives an H1B RFE – even if it’s a double employment issue RFE or the Nightmare RFE that is virtually impossible to answer by its own instructions – the first step is to read it through carefully. Then, put it down and go back to the basics.

Go back to the original H1B eligibility requirements and identify which one is lacking in supporting evidence.

For a job to qualify for H1B eligibility, it must be a specialty occupation. That means as a minimum for entry into the position, the candidate must have a US bachelor’s degree or higher or its equivalent. CIS requires the degree be in the exact field of the H1B job, even if an employer will hire a candidate with a degree in a related field. That means if the job and the degree are not an exact match, evidence must be provided in the petition to fill in the gap. If this job in question does not typically require an advanced degree but this position is uniquely specialized, evidence clearly explaining why accompanied by an expert opinion letter to back it up is required to answer RFEs pertaining to this issue.

The H1B beneficiary must be earning the prevailing wage for the job as is consistent with that position, in that industry, in companies of that size, in that geographic location. If this is the issue, you will need to provide documentation of the employee’s wages and the factors that went into determining the wage level accompanied by an expert opinion letter to support why the wage level is set as it is.

If the RFE inquires into both of these issues, you do not need two separate expert opinion letters. At TheDegreePeople.com, we work with experts in all industries who can cover both concerns with one letter, which means you only have to order one.

For a beneficiary to meet H1B eligibility requirements, they must hold the necessary degree in the necessary field. This gets tricky when candidates need to meet the degree requirement through means of equivalency. H1B requirements state the candidate must hold the US bachelors degree or higher or its equivalent. Candidates with education from outside of the United States, incomplete education, no formal college education, or the right degree in the wrong specialization need to submit a detailed credential evaluation along with the RFE response. This evaluation must be written with consideration of the job and the specific requirements of the H1B visa. Often, a candidate’s work experience must be added to the degree to meet specialization requirements, or to account for missing years – because of incomplete college or from a 3-year degree to account for the missing fourth year.

At TheDegreePeople, we understand that every pathway through education is different, and therefore never write a cookie cutter evaluation. We take the individual, the job, and the visa requirements into consideration along with CIS approval trends. Every year, we work with difficult RFEs and every year we answer them successfully.

For a free review of your case visit ccifree.com. We will get back to you in 48 hours or less with an analysis, pre-evaluation, and our recommendations.

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Is H1B the Right Filing for You? Find out NOW

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

April 1st 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

At the same time, last year saw an unprecedented spike in RFEs. Between January 1st 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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How Going Back to the Basics Can Solve Your RFE Woes

Credential Evaluation, Immigration

If you or your employee or client received an RFE on their H1B petition, read it over but don’t get caught up in the wording.  Instead, go back to the basics to find out what CIS is really asking for in requesting the evidence indicated.

The original H1B eligibility requirements are your key to successfully answering an RFE with as little stress as possible.  Find out which requirements were lacking in evidence to prove that the candidate, the job, and the employer meet them.

H1B qualified candidates work specialty occupations, hold the necessarily US degree or foreign equivalent, and have an employer-employee relationship with an employer that is economically viable and paying them prevailing wages and benefits.  Specialty occupation is defined as a job requiring such a high level of skill that the candidate must have a US bachelor’s degree or higher or its foreign equivalent in the exact field of the job to have the skills and knowledge necessary to carry out the duties of the job.

So read over the RFE and find out which of these requirements is in question.  Is CIS cautious about the employer or the employee contract?  Are the wage rates in question?  Is CIS unclear whether the job is specialized to fit H1B guidelines?  If these are where evidence was lacking in the initial petition, you can submit pay stubs, a copy of the employee contract and job description, and tax information about the employer.  If the job is in question, send in the ad for the job that indicates the minimum qualifications.  You may also need to provide evidence that similar jobs in the same industry in similar companies also require a minimum of a US bachelor’s degree or higher to perform its duties.  If this particular job requires a unique level of specialization, be sure to include an expert opinion letter and evidence to back it up as to why this is the case.

Oftentimes, CIS is cautious about a candidate because of the education.  Candidates with degrees from outside of the United States, or degrees with majors that are not an exact fit for their H1B job, and candidates who have not completed college need to work harder to prove to CIS that their education is sufficiently specialized to meet H1B requirements.  Each of these situations requires a credential evaluation tailored to the candidate’s unique education and work experience, as well as their job, H1B educational requirements, and CIS approval trends.

At TheDegreePeople.com, we always keep one eye on the education and the other on CIS.  If you have any questions, please call or email any time and we will respond promptly.  Simply go to ccifree.com/, or call 800-771-4723.

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