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Effective Now: Memorandum Lets Adjudicators Deny Petitions without NOID or RFE

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

This past July, USCIS announced a policy memorandum that took effect September 11th, 2018.  This memorandum allows adjudicators to deny incomplete applications, requests, and petitions without first issuing an NOID and RFE.

Before the memorandum, adjudicators were required to issue an RFE or NOID instead of outright Denials unless there was absolutely no possibility that the case would be approved.  Now, adjudicators have broader discretion to flat out deny petitions.

CIS says that the purpose of this memorandum is to deter “placeholder” petitions, which are incomplete petitions with vague answers that are later clarified in RFE responses.  Adjudicators can now deny these cases flat out.  Some examples include petitions submitted without supporting evidence or severely lacking in supporting evidence, petitions submitted with questions left unanswered, and petitions that require additional official documents or evidence but are submitted without them.

While this amendment sounds alarming, in theory it really doesn’t change much for petitioners.  From what we can tell at TheDegreePeople, reports of issue have been exaggerated.  It has always been generally advised for petitioners of all visas to submit complete petitions, on time, with all supporting evidence and documentation included.  In this sense, nothing has actually changed when it comes to optimizing your chances of visa approval.

However, laws on the books are different from laws in action.  To see the full scope of how this new memorandum will change visa approval, we will have to wait and see how it all plays out with USCIS.  In the meantime, it’s now more important than ever that you get the petition right the first time.  That means identifying where CIS is likely to have questions about your case and providing any additional evidence they will need before they have to ask for it.

At TheDegreePeople, we have been working with RFEs for years and follow CIS approval trends.  The best way to answer an RFE now, as it has always been, is to prevent it in the first place.  Visit TheDegreePeople.com to chat with us about your case.

Have you encountered issues with this new memorandum?  We want to hear about it!  Comment here to post your opinions and experiences regarding this matter.

Effective Now: Memorandum Lets Adjudicators Deny Petitions without NOID or RFE Read More »

6 Tips to Choose an Evaluator or Expert

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

Choosing what evaluator or expert to work with can be daunting because writing evaluations for specific visa issues is a very specialized and detailed undertaking, and finding a credible expert is essential to the opinion letter carrying legitimacy in the eyes of CIS. When deciding on who to work with, here are 5 essential things to keep in mind:

1. Talk to the head of the agency.

Before you work with an evaluator or expert, make sure to talk directly with the head of the agency. This way, you can have your questions answered directly by the highest authority and any agreements you come to or expectations provided will be final. The second reason is that the head of the agency you want to work with should be available and willing to speak directly with customers. If this is not the case, you don’t want to work with them.

2. Ask the right questions and listen carefully to how they answer your questions.

Whether you’re talking to the director or to the expert or evaluator you will be working with, listen to their answers and notice how you feel when you talk to them. If you feel uncomfortable, there is probably a reason. Are they actually answering your questions to your satisfaction or are they talking AROUND answers. When you listen closely, you can easily make out who has depth of knowledge, both about their field of expertise and about working with visa and RFE cases. Do they ask about the job? Do they ask about the visa? If the answer to either of those questions is anything but yes, look elsewhere.

3. How long have they been in business?

The agency you want to work with has in depth experience working with visa cases and their RFEs. If they’ve been in business for less than ten years, you need to find out who the evaluator or expert was work for before to get a sense of their depth of knowledge.

4. Are their prices reasonable?

If they are charging too much, then look elsewhere. In this field, you don’t “get what you pay for.” The agency you want to work with makes it easy for you to work with them, and part of that is offering reasonable prices for quality service. On the other hand, if an agency is undercutting reasonably priced agencies, that’s also a red flag. It means they are likely cutting the corners you need to for H1B visa approval.

5. Is the agency a member of an organization with standards of excellence?

In the United States, there is no governmental oversight or set standards of excellence for credential evaluation. That means it’s up to the agencies themselves to hold themselves accountable to quality service. However, if an agency is a member of a professional organization that holds its members accountable like the International Center for Academic Excellence, you can be sure that the agency you’re working with does not oversight. Find out what professional organizations the agency belongs to and take a look at the organization’s requirements for membership and how the organization itself ensures its own accountability through the US Department of Education, the Better Business Bureau, or UNESCO. This sounds like a lot of work, but it’s only connecting just a few dots, and a little bit of research goes a long way and saves you from another RFE inquiring about the legitimacy of your evaluator or expert.

6. Ask questions specific to your case.

If your case is regarding an education situation, ask about their past experience working with the particular situation. If your case is regarding specialty occupation or wage level issues, ask specifically about how they have been able to handle those situations in the past. If you are facing issues regarding site visits, for example, ask, “Have you been able to handle site visits?” Again, listen carefully to their answer. If they throw out a generic answer, or an answer that doesn’t relate to the issue you asked about, look elsewhere.

At TheDegreePeople we have experts in all fields and credential evaluators on staff with an in-depth understanding of H1B visa requirements, international education, and undergraduate and graduate admissions in the United States. To work with our experts and expert evaluators visit ccifree.com/ for a free consultation to get started.

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Wage Level and Specialty Occupation RFEs: Who Dropped the Ball?

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

Sometimes it’s the employer’s fault.If the job indicated by the employer on the LCA does not match the position on the H1B petition, or if the job indicated on the LCA is in the “other” category, or doesn’t match the duties of the actual position, or if the wage level set does not clearly meet the prevailing wage for the job, that means the employer is at fault. Consistent answers across forms is essential. If the job in question differs from the duties and responsibilities, or differs from the wage level indicated in the entry for the position in the Occupational Outlook Handbook, the petition needs to clearly explain how these differences fit within the requirements of H1B visa status.

Sometimes it’s the beneficiary’s fault.Sometimes beneficiaries don’t actually have the correct degree for the H1B job. Sometimes mistranslated educational documents, diplomas that are mistaken for degrees, and other issues that arise my virtue of hiring across cultures and educational structures hinder the approval process.

Sometimes it’s the evaluator’s fault.If you or your employee or client has education from outside of the United States or a degree that is not an exact match for the H1B job, a credential evaluation is needed to fill in the gaps with a close evaluation of the course content and work experience with regards to the job in question, and specific H1B eligibility requirements. If the credential evaluator relied on online databases like EDGE to write the evaluation, or if the credential evaluator did not ask about the job or the visa, chances are the evaluation did not address all of the questions CIS must answer to approve the visa.

Sometimes it’s no one’s fault. CIS approval trends change every year, which makes it difficult to predict what they will hone in on next. Sometimes mistakes are made on the bureaucratic end and you receive an RFE for evidence clearly provided in the initial H1B petition. If this is the case, you still have to answer it.

It’s important to note that finding out who dropped the ball doesn’t have to be about pointing fingers or condemning a member of the H1B team. The key here is to find out how to solve the problem of the RFE and get it overturned.

At TheDegreePeople we work with difficult RFEs every year, and we always find creative solutions to even the most complex and convoluted RFEs. Let us help you. For a free review of your case, or your employee or client’s case, visit ccifree.com.. We will get back to you in 48 hours or less.]]>

Wage Level and Specialty Occupation RFEs: Who Dropped the Ball? Read More »

What to do When You Get an H1B RFE About Everything

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

This year, we’re seeing the Nightmare RFE with specialty occupation, wage level, and education issues included. When CIS finds one problem with a petition, they usually find more, which can cause a cascading effect that leads to a virtually unanswerable RFE like the ones we’re seeing this year.

If you, or your employee or client receives this kind of RFE, the first step is to go back to the basics. Since every H1B requirement is in question, all you have to do is go back to the fundamental guidelines of this visa. First, the H1B job must be a specialty occupation, meaning it requires a minimum of a US bachelor’s degree or higher for entrance into the position. Second, the H1B beneficiary must hold that degree in the field of the H1B job, or have the equivalent of the necessary degree. Third, the employee must be paid the prevailing wages and benefits for that position, in the industry for companies of that size in that geographic location. The employer must be economically viable, and there must be an employer-employee relationship in which the employer controls the work the employee does.

To prove the job meets H1B standards, you will need to show that it meets H1B educational requirements for specialty occupations. Provide the ad for the job and ads for the same position in similar companies in the industry. Provide documentation of past hiring practices that shows employees holding this position historically require this minimum advanced degree requirement. Detail the duties and responsibilities of the job and highlight how they necessitate the employee having earned the advanced degree to learn the specialized skills and knowledge the job requires.

When it comes to education issues, you or your client or employee must have a US bachelor’s degree in the exact field of the H1B job, or its equivalent. That’s where things can get tricky. If the beneficiary has ANYTHING BESIDES a US bachelor’s degree in the exact field of the H1B job you will need to include a credential evaluation that takes both the job and the visa into consideration that fills in the gaps between the credentials the beneficiary has, and the credentials the beneficiary needs to get the RFE overturned.

For proving that working conditions and compensation meet H1B requirements, include a copy of the employee contract, including salary or wage documentation. You will need to explain the factors that went into deciding the wage level for the job, and evidence that shows this wage level is an industry standard for that position in that geographic location for companies of that size. If the wage level varies, you need to explain exactly why.

These complex RFEs also require an expert opinion letter that can cover occupational issues – both regarding specialization and working conditions. Both issues can be covered in the same letter to explain and verify the evidence you provide in your RFE response.

At TheDegreePeople.com we understand that when CIS finds one problem with a case, that’s rarely the end of it. We work with difficult cases every year regarding education and occupation. For a free consultation visit ccifree.com. We will get back to you in 48 hours or less.

What to do When You Get an H1B RFE About Everything Read More »

Specialty Occupation and Wage Level H1B RFE Assistance

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

Here’s how it works: if the wage is set at a level CIS feels does not meet the H1B job, they will request more information regarding meet the prevailing wage requirement, and in many cases, regarding job specialization. That’s because CIS assumes that jobs set at level 1 wages it is an entry level position. If the job at the assumed skill level does not always require a minimum of a US bachelor’s degree or higher, CIS will question whether the job meet H1B specialization requirements.

Determining the wage level of a job takes a multitude of factors into consideration, including industry standard, company size, geographic wage levels, the level of training and supervision the beneficiary will require, and beneficiary qualifications. When addressing specialization, you will need to break down the responsibilities of the job and the skills and knowledge required to carry them out to show that the job meets specialization requirements. If this job in similar companies in the industry does not normally require an advanced degree, you will have to clearly show why this job is uniquely specialized and that an advanced degree requirement is consistent with past employment practices.

In your RFE response, all of these factors will need to be listed, explained, and analyzed in an expert opinion letter. At TheDegreePeople we have experts on hand 24/7 that can address both wage level and specialization in one letter, saving you time and money. Every year, we answer difficult RFEs and we get them overturned. 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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Three H1B RFEs to Be Aware of This Summer

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

To qualify for H1B status, a job must require a minimum of a US bachelor’s degree or higher or its equivalent, and the employer must pay the employee the prevailing wages for the job. The beneficiary must hold the required degree or its equivalent. Three issues arise that result in RFEs when the evidentiary requirements to meet these three standards are not met:

1. Wage Level RFE

If CIS feels that the wage level is set too low or two high for the position based on the wage level and the duties and qualifications set forth by the job, they will issue an RFE. This became a widespread issue in 2017 for computer programmers making level 1 wages, but it effects jobs of all levels in all industries.

If you, or your employee or client must address wage level issues in the RFE, make sure to include a detailed description of the job duties as well as a close analysis of the factors taken into consideration when determining the wage level of the job, including company size, geographic location, industry standard, and the level of supervision and training needed for this particular position. Look up the entry for the position in the US Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook and be sure to identify any discrepancies between the entry and the H1B job and wage level and provide evidence to fill in the gaps.

2. Specialty Occupation RFE

This RFE and the wage level RFE are often interlinked. The job in question must clearly meet CIS specialization requirements, meaning a US bachelor’s degree or higher or its equivalent must be a MINIMUM qualification for entry into this position. Include the ad for the job and ads for the same job for similar companies in the same industry. Include a detailed job description and documentation of past hiring practices that require a minimum of the necessary advanced degree.

If the entry for the job in the Occupational Outlook Handbook indicates an employee could be hired with a minimum educational qualification less advanced than a US bachelor’s degree, you will need to go an extra step to justify why this position is uniquely complex.

For both the Wage Level RFE and the Specialty Occupation RFE, ALWAYS include an expert opinion letter in your response to tie the evidence and analysis all together and lend validation and strength to the case. CIS won’t just take your word for it, even if you’re right.

3. Education RFE

If the H1B beneficiary has a US bachelor’s degree or higher in the exact field of the H1B job, you shouldn’t have any education problems arise. This is never a guarantee, but it is generally true. However, if your client has incomplete college, a degree in a different field, or a degree from a different country, you may run into trouble if you did not take extra steps to avoid an education RFE when you organized the petition.

If your client received an education RFE, you will need to talk with a credential evaluation agency with experience working with H1B cases. Not all credential evaluators understand CIS approval trends, international education, and the specifics of what works for each unique visa. If your evaluator doesn’t ask about the visa or the job, all they can write is a cookie cutter evaluation that won’t get the RFE overturned.

At TheDegreePeople, we work with difficult RFEs every year, and we get them overturned. We have experts on hand to address wage level and specialty occupation issues in just one letter that can encompass one or both issues. Our evaluators are international education experts with extensive experience working with CIS, college and graduate programs admissions, and a variety of education and work-related visas. When we look at a case, we anticipate all of the possible snags and address them all in one RFE response so you can prevent having to go through the entire process again.

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

Three H1B RFEs to Be Aware of This Summer Read More »

How to Preempt a Second H1B RFE by Answering the First One

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

Getting an RFE is rarely, if ever, the end of the road. It is a request for evidence, meaning CIS is open to reversing if you can provide what they need. The solution is to preempt the second round of RFEs in your response to the first.

That means if you, or your employee or client received a notorious Double Specialty Occupation/Wage Level RFE, you should also be thinking about bolstering your evidence to support the educational requirements. If you, or your employee or client’s RFE was about their education, include supporting evidence to verify the job also meets H1B requirements.

If this sounds like a lot of work to you, that’s because it is. BUT it’s a lot more work if you have to answer two RFEs this H1B season. Every year CIS approval trends change, and that means we’ve got to stay alert and innovative in our RFE answers.

At TheDegreePeople, when we review a client’s RFE we review the entire case to see where evidence might be lacking and advise accordingly. We have experts on call 24/7 to address wage level and specialty occupation issues, as well as expert credential evaluators to address educational issues. Our evaluators don’t rely on online databases, but rather evaluate each credential individually with regard for the job, the specific visa requirements, international education and commerce agreements, and CIS approval trends.

Make the most of your RFE response this H1B season so you only have to do it once. For a free review of your case, visit ccifree.com/. We will get back to you in 48 hours or less with a full pre-evaluation and analysis, and our expert recommendations for how to best proceed.

How to Preempt a Second H1B RFE by Answering the First One Read More »

Specialty Occupation and Wage Level H1B RFEs: Who Dropped the Ball?

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

If you or your employee or client receives an RFE, don’t panic. RFEs have become very common, and can be a helpful tool to fortify the case for approval. Sit down with your team and carefully read through the RFE, then put the RFE down and go back to the original H1B eligibility requirements and see where the case is lacking. In this process, it is important to see who dropped the ball, and how to pick it back up. This does not mean pointing fingers, placing blame, or spouting anger. Oftentimes the reason for the RFE is changing CIS approval trends. Sometimes it’s no one’s fault.

Specialty occupation and wage level RFEs jumped ahead of education RFEs in response to last year’s lottery. H1B requirements state that to be eligible for this visa the job must require a minimum of a US bachelor’s degree or higher or its equivalent to gain entry into the position. This must be an industry standard, or you must go a step further to prove that this position is uniquely specialized and holding an advanced degree is consistent with employer hiring practices. The job must also pay the prevailing wage for the job in the industry, for companies of that size in that geographical location.

Last year, computer programmers making level 1 wages were hit especially hard with RFEs. CIS claimed that since some employers will hire entry-level computer programmers with only an associate’s degree, the job does not meet specialization requirements, or the wage level is not set correctly. One of the main problems with the reasoning for this RFE is that wage level does not necessarily determine the specialization of the position, rather it is set in accordance with the prevailing wage and takes the level of training and supervision required for the employee into consideration as well.

Specialty occupation RFEs and wage level RFEs are so interconnected they often come together. Now that we know what we’re dealing with, let’s see where the fault may lie.

Sometimes it’s nobody’s fault. CIS approval trends change, and the best we can do is learn for the approval trends of last year, and what RFE responses worked and which ones did not. Sometimes it’s CIS’ fault. You could file an immaculate petition and still receive an RFE. CIS could be unreasonable with their justification for the RFE, or just plain wrong. Whatever the reason, you still must answer it.

Sometimes the attorney will make a mistake when filing, there will be omitted pages in the petition, or it will be filed out of order. Sometimes it’s the beneficiary’s fault. Providing poorly translated educational documents, misconceptions about the value of a credential’s academic value, and providing misleading or false information in resumes happens. These mistakes are not necessarily on purpose, even if it involves providing false information. Sometimes names are misspelled or answers are inconsistent from one document to the next.

Sometimes it’s the employer’s fault. Maybe the job really is set at the wrong wage level. Maybe the job indicated in the LCA is different than the job title in the petition. Inconsistencies across documents are easy mistakes to make, especially in the rush to file by April 1st, but these mistakes have far-reaching consequences. Maybe your team didn’t provide enough detailed evidence regarding the duties and responsibilities of the job in question.

Whatever the reason for the RFE, it’s important that you identify where the case is lacking in evidence, whose job it is to provide it, and fix it. At TheDegreePeople, we work with difficult RFEs every year. We can help you identify what went wrong and how to fix it. For a free review of your case visit ccifree.com/. We will get back to you in 48 hours or less.

Specialty Occupation and Wage Level H1B RFEs: Who Dropped the Ball? Read More »

Case Study: The Triple H1B RFE – OVERTURNED!

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

We saw them last year, and we have the experts with the highest rate of success to help overturn them. Coming up on RFE season, it’s important to keep in mind that many RFEs cannot be answered by their own instructions. The solution is to go back to the original H1B requirements and make sure they are clearly met, documented, explained, and backed up by expert opinion.

To be eligible for an H1B visa, the job must be a specialty occupation, which means as a minimum requirement the employee must hold a US bachelors degree or higher or its equivalent in the field of the job. The beneficiary must have this degree or equivalency to meet H1B requirements, and the employer must pay the beneficiary prevailing wages and benefits for this position for companies of that size in that geographical location.

In answering the Triple RFE, you need to do three things:

First, the job in question must meet the criteria of a specialty occupation. This can be done in one of three ways:

  1. The job requires a US bachelors degree or higher.
  2. A US bachelors degree or higher is a normal minimum requirement for this position for the industry in similar companies.
  3. This particular job is uniquely complex so as to require a US bachelors degree or higher to perform its duties.

Second, it must be proven that Level 1 Wages are the prevailing wage for this specialty occupation. For jobs set at Level 1 Wages, CIS is operating from the misconception that Level 1 Wages implies that the job is entry level. They’re wrong. That’s not how wage levels work. There are many factors that are taken into consideration when determining wage levels. You need to show that this is the prevailing wage for this position to meet H1B requirements. These first two issues can be addressed in one expert opinion letter.

Third, the beneficiary must clearly meet H1B educational requirements. This means the beneficiary holds the advanced degree or its equivalent in the field of the H1B job. That means if the degree is from outside of the United States, in a different field than the H1B job, or incomplete, you will need to include a credential evaluation that fills in any gaps between the beneficiary’s education and H1B education requirements. This must take into account education that took place through work experience and a close evaluation of course content and classroom contact hours involved in the degree.

At TheDegreePeople, we work with difficult RFEs every year, and we have the experts with the highest rates of success to help overturn them.

For a no-charge and no-obligation review of your case, or your employee or client’s case, simply visit ccifree.com. We will get back to you in 48 hours or less with a full analysis and pre-evaluation.

Case Study: The Triple H1B RFE – OVERTURNED! Read More »

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