work visa Archives - Career Consulting International

Preventing More RFEs: Two H1B RFEs to Always Answer Together

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

Two RFEs that are closely connected are specialty occupation and wage level RFEs. Even if both of these issues are not brought up verbatim in the same RFE, it is likely that one issue implies the other. That means if you, or your employee or client receives a wage level RFE, you must answer both that issue and the issue of specialty occupation. If you, or your employee or client receives a specialty occupation RFE, you must also answer the issue of the wage level in your response. If you don’t, you will likely be getting another RFE soon.

Here’s how you do it:

To prove specialization, you must show that the H1B job requires a minimum of a US bachelor’s degree or higher to perform. To show that this is an industry standard, supply the ad for the job, as well as other ads for the same position in parallel companies within the industry to demonstrate the minimum requirement. Include a detailed breakdown of the job’s duties, tasks, and responsibilities to show that the work required is specialized and needs training to perform. If this particular position is uniquely specialized to require an advanced degree beyond what is the industry standard for this position, besides providing the detailed work breakdown, you will need to provide record of past hiring practices to show that the employer typically hires workers with advanced degrees for this position, and further evidence to explain why this job is uniquely specialized.

Then, address the wage level, as paying the H1B employee the prevailing wage for the position in the industry in that geographical location for companies of that size is also an H1B requirement. If the wage level doesn’t match the job entry indicated in the US Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook, you need to go a step further and explain all of the factors that went into deciding the wage level for the position. This includes the amount of direct work experience the H1B worker has in the field, the level of supervision required, and any further training necessary.

To tie all of this together, you will need an expert opinion letter that validates the job’s specialization and wage level. One letter can address both issues as they are closely linked and much of the same evidence and analysis go into supporting both aspects of the RFE.

At TheDegreePeople, we have experts from all fields on hand 24/7 – as well as highly trained credential evaluators with expert knowledge of working with H1B visas and difficult RFEs – to analyze your case and get you the expert opinion letter you need to overturn this RFE, and prevent the second round. We even provide affordable rush delivery options for the last minute.

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

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How to Prevent a 2nd Round of H1B RFEs with Your First Answer

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

The trick is to provide evidence to support all aspects of H1B requirements in the first answer, even if the RFE didn’t specifically ask for it. Just meeting the evidence requests in the first RFE may seem daunting enough without the addition of having to preempt a second round, but trust me, it’s worth it. It will save you a lot of time, money, and headache later on.

At TheDegreePeople, we review each client’s entire case and make sure all of the bases are covered. H1B elligibility means the beneficiary is working a specialty occupation that requires a minimum of a US bachelor’s degree or its equivalent as a minimum qualification to be hired. The beneficiary must hold the required degree in the exact field of the specialty occupation. The employer must pay the employee the prevailing wage for that job in that field for companies of that size in that geographic location, and the employer must be able to hire, fire, promote, supervise, and otherwise control the work the employee does.

For H1B employees working at third-party consulting firms, you must show that there are projects lined up for the employee to perform over the course of their H1B status.

We review each case and the associated RFE and make sure to address any discrepancies between the requirements and the petition. That means addressing why the wage level is set as it is, why the job requires an advanced degree, and addressing the education situation. If you or your employee or client has a degree in a different field – even if it’s related – or a degree from outside of the US or never completed a bachelor’s degree, you will need to include a credential evaluation that closes the gaps between your education, or your employee or client’s education and H1B educational requirements.

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

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H1B Job Specialization: What's Wrong with the Level 1 Wages RFE

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

This RFE posits that the job of computer programmer at Level 1 Wages is not specialized to meet CIS requirements for the H1B visa.

To qualify for H1B status, the beneficiary’s job must require a minimum of a US bachelors degree or its equivalent, and the beneficiary must hold the necessary credentials in that field. The purpose of the H1B program is to attract bright minds to US colleges, universities, and graduate programs with the option to remain in the country to work having qualified for H1B status after graduation, and also to attract highly skilled workers to the US who have already earned advanced degrees to jump right into the workforce. Strengthening and furthering the development of STEM industries in the US is one of the central purposes of the H1B program, and computer programmers are essential to this goal.

That’s why this particular RFE is so damaging – it directly targets computer programmers, particularly recent college graduates who require a high level of supervision as they enter the workforce after having earned their bachelors degrees.

Here is the gist of what CIS says in the RFE: Computer programmers at Level 1 Wages do not meet H1B job specialization requirements because, according to a passage in the US Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook, some employers will hire entry level programmers with only a US associates degree. This wrongly assumes that just because a job is set at Level 1 Wages it is automatically entry level. This also ignores the other part of that same passage in the Occupational Outlook Handbook that states employers will usually require a US bachelors degree as a minimum requirement for entry level programmers.

The solution is a thorough expert opinion letter that analyzes the holes in the rationale of the RFE, accompanying a detailed job description. We have experts on hand 24/7 ready to help you. Let us review your case, or your employee or client’s case at no charge and no obligation.

Please send the following documents to [email protected]:

– LCA

– Beneficiary Resume and Educational Documents

– Employer Support Letter

– Detailed Job Description

– RFE

We will get back to you in 48 hours or less with a full analysis of the case and our recommendations on how to move forward to get the RFE overturned and the visa approved.

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CASE STUDY: The Biggest Nightmare RFE Out There

Credential Evaluation, Immigration

You’ve heard of the Nightmare RFE and the Double Employment Issue RFE. Get ready, because this is about to be terrifying:

This RFE season is the harshest we’ve seen yet. Now, CIS is combining these RFEs. Candidates are now having to defend against requests for evidence regarding every facet of their education AND employment issues. The Nightmare on its own is virtually impossible to answer given the time and evidence demanded. Now, it’s even worse. We could call it the Triple RFE, but the best way to approach it is as one, single, consolidated RFE.

Here’s how:

Go back to the basics. The Nightmare RFE cannot be answered by its own guidelines. Instead, at TheDegreePeople.com, we go back to the original H1B requirements and meet them impeccably. This requires a detailed credential evaluation that may include expert opinion letters, work experience conversions, citing federal case law, international education and labor agreements, and CIS precedent decisions to show that your client meets the educational requirements of both the H1B visa, and their job.

At the same time, we need to address the employment issues. These issues have had to do with whether or not the job in question is adequately specialized to meet H1B requirements. The issue arises when the job indicated on the employer’s Labor Conditions Application doesn’t meet the duties of the job indicated on the H1B petition exactly, and when the employer indicates Wage Level 1 for the H1B job. CIS contests that the job doesn’t match, and also that just because a job is at Wage Level 1 it is not specialized to the point of requiring a US Bachelor’s Degree or higher or its foreign equivalent. An expert opinion letter is needed in these cases that explains the situation, alongside documentation clearly spelling out the specialized responsibilities involved in the job. In many cases, employees start at Wage Level 1 because they are fresh out of college without much work experience, and while their job is adequately specialized, it still requires a lot of guidance and supervision.

You don’t have to address all three issues presented in the biggest Nightmare RFE out there with three separate responses. At TheDegreePeople.com, we have been able to successfully answer every one of these horrid RFEs in one fell swoop with a creative approach and an expert opinion letter that addresses both employment issues. If you’re staring down this terrifying RFE, simply go to ccifree.com and let us review your case for free.

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H1B Educational Requirements Your Client Needs to Know About to Avoid an RFE

Credential Evaluation, Immigration, Visa Approvals

Wrong.

And getting more and more wrong as CIS trends grow increasingly complex with regards to candidates’ education. As the IT industry grows, requiring more highly skilled workers to fill the increasing number of jobs that US citizens cannot fill, IT companies that can afford to hire H1B workers are doing so. While the number of H1B jobs in the United States has skyrocketed, the number of annual visas available has not. At the same time, tightened educational requirements are part of CIS’s attempt to mitigate visa fraud. CIS trends fluctuate from year to year, and even a perfectly filed petition for an over-qualified candidate can receive an RFE. Understanding these educational requirements and how to meet them – and sometimes how to meet them in creative ways – will help your client get their visa approved without CIS ever issuing an RFE.

Candidate’s Degree Must be a US Bachelor’s Degree or Its Equivalent

This requirement is not as straightforward as it sounds. If your client has a four-year Bachelor’s degree from a US college or university, go ahead and file. All other degrees need to be reviewed by a credential evaluator. Foreign degrees need a credential evaluation because educational systems vary from country to country, and the academic value of a bachelor’s degree from one place does not necessarily equate because it’s called a bachelor’s degree. In the same way, a foreign certification or licensure may actually be the equivalent of a US bachelor’s degree even though it doesn’t call itself a degree. For example, one situation that triggers a lot of RFE’s is when a candidate has an Indian Chartered Accountancy certification. This is actually the equivalent of a US Bachelor’s degree in accounting, but the same certification in Canada is not. The Canadian Chartered Accountancy certification is a professional license, but not post-secondary education. See how this gets confusing? A credential evaluator can make the necessary equivalency determinations about your client’s education, explain how the equivalency works, and back up with equivalency with evidence.

Four Years of Post-Secondary Education Matter

If your client has a three-year bachelor’s degree – ESPECIALLY if it’s an Indian three-year degree – their education is likely to trigger an RFE if it is not handled correctly. CIS trends require focus on longevity rather than academic content when it comes to years of college or university, so it is you and your client’s responsibility to show that academic content and progressive work experience comprise a fourth year of college credit. How can you do this? There are two options that we have seen work almost every time when it comes to the H1B visa. An evaluator can convert years of progressive work experience into college credit. Progressive experience means that your client’s job required them to expand their knowledgebase and skillset, and take on increasing amounts of work and responsibility. Three years of this nature of work can be converted into one year of college credit. Never submit an H1B petition without an evaluation that accounts for the missing fourth year.

Degree Must Be Specialized and Exactly Matching Candidate’s Job

This is a relatively new requirement that takes many H1B candidates, their employers, and their lawyers by surprise. While it’s common for an employer to hire a candidate with a degree in a field related to the job, CIS will not approve their visa. In the past six or seven years, CIS trends have changed regarding this requirement. In the past, a candidate with a degree in a related field would have the petition approved, now instead they receive an RFE. Your client’s degree major must be an exact match for their field of employ. At the same time, because H1B requirements indicate the job must require specialized knowledge and skills to carry out its duties, candidates with generalized degrees are also running into this problem. If your client is in a mismatched degree situation, your client needs to prove that she does possess the specialized skills and knowledge required to be successful at her job even if it is not directly reflected in her college major.

The way to do this is to prove equivalence to a US bachelor’s degree in her field of employ with a credential evaluation. The way this works is an evaluator can convert years of progressive work experience in her field of employ into college credit hours in that major track with the three years of work to one year of college credit conversion. The evaluation must show that your client has the equivalent of a US four-year bachelor’s degree with the bulk to the equated credit hours in their field. This requires a detailed evaluation with a credential evaluator familiar with CIS educational requirements, as well as precedents of what they will accept and what they will not accept.

If your client as anything but a straightforward US four-year bachelor’s degree, have their education reviewed by a credential evaluator to see what you need to do to avoid an RFE.

About the Author

Sheila Danzig

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

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The Top 3 Reasons for Education H1-B RFEs

Credential Evaluation, Visa Approvals

Why are there so many education RFEs?

Reason #1 – The candidate’s education equivalence does not match the job offer.

Reason #2 – See Reason #1.

Reason #3 – See Reasons #1 and #2.

Aren’t there any other reasons CIS would call a candidate’s education into question? Not really. There are small issues where CIS requests additional or more complete education documentation, but 90% of the RFEs are about the education equivalence not matching the title of the job offer. Education RFEs are very common because while employers will hire employees with degrees in related fields, CIS requires an H1-B employee’s degree to be an exact match for their job.

Many evaluation agencies write standard evaluations of foreign credentials without taking particular Visa requirements, federal case law, and CIS trends into account. In these situations, you will likely have an accurate evaluation, but your degree still will not match your job offer. This is an example of a good evaluator writing the wrong evaluation.

Well, you might get lucky and slide through, right? So why not just wait for an RFE to submit the education evaluation that CIS wants? Luck HAS worked reasonably well up until just recently. Some petitions did manage to slide by, but in the past two years we started seeing the “Nightmare” RFE begin to increase. If your degree or your degree evaluation does not match your job offer, you will likely run into problems with CIS, and the “Nightmare” RFE is a problem you never want to have to face. This is an extremely complicated RFE that is literally impossible to answer. While no one knows what triggers these particular RFEs, we DO know that they almost always occur when the candidate’s education does not match the job offer.

Send in a credential evaluation that takes your work experience and course content into account to fill in the gaps between your degree and your job offer before you have to do it the hard way. A simple work experience evaluation can prevent this “Nightmare” experience.

If it’s too late and you have already received a “Nightmare” RFE – also known as the “Kitchen Sink” RFE because absolutely everything is in it but the kitchen sink – we can help you. While this RFE cannot actually be met as written, we have developed a systematic approach to addressing this RFE that has worked 95% of the time.

To learn more about the Nightmare RFE, check out my article http://discuss.ilw.com/content.php?4449-Article-You-Can-Beat-The-Nightmare-RFE-for-H1B-By-Sheila-Danzig. You CAN beat the “Nightmare” RFE, but why do it if you don’t have to? Don’t risk this “Nightmare” scenario. Get your credentials evaluated by an evaluation agency with the authority to convert work experience in your field of employ into college credit. Some agencies simply do not write these kinds of evaluations. When you talk to them on the phone, tell them that you need an education evaluation for an H1-B Visa petition. If they don’t ask about your job offer, look elsewhere. You need an evaluator knowledgeable about international education as well as CIS trends.

About the Author

Sheila Danzig

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