dismissed EB-1B Case: Research

~dentUying data deleted to 
prevent clearly unwarranted 
invasion of penonal privacy 
PUBLIC COPY 
U.S. Department of Homeland Security 
20 Mass. Ave., N.W., Rm. 3000 
Washington, DC 20529 
U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
43 
PETITION: 
 Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker as Outstanding Professor or Researcher Pursuant to 
Section 203(b)(l)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. 8 1153(b)(l)(B) 
ON BEHALF OF PETITIONER: 
INSTRUCTIONS: 
This is the decision of the Administrative Appeals Office in your case. All documents have been returned to 
the office that originally decided your case. Any further inquiry must be made to that office. 
L&b- 
%obert P. W~emann, Chief 
Administrative Appeals Office 
Page 2 
DISCUSSION: The Director, Nebraska Service Center, denied the employment-based immigrant visa 
petition, which is now before the Administrative Appeals Office on appeal. The appeal will be 
dismissed. 
The petitioner is a university. It seeks to classify the beneficiary as an outstanding researcher pursuant 
to section 203(b)(l)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act), 8 U.S.C. 8 1153(b)(l)(B). 
According to the petition, the petitioner seeks to employ the beneficiary in the United States as a senior 
scientist. The director determined that the petitioner had not established that it had offered the 
beneficiary a permanent job as of the date of filing. 
On appeal, counsel submits a letter clarifying the beneficiary's employment. For the reasons discussed 
below, the petitioner has not submitted the required initial evidence, the job offer that predates the filing 
of the petition. 
Section 203(b) of the Act states, in pertinent part, that: 
(1) Priority Workers. -- Visas shall first be made available . . . to qualified immigrants who are 
aliens described in any of the following subparagraphs (A) through (C): 
(B) Outstanding Professors and Researchers. -- An alien is described in this 
subparagraph if -- 
(i) the alien is recognized internationally as outstanding in a specific 
academic area, 
(ii) the alien has at least 3 years of experience in teaching or research in the 
academic area, and 
(iii) the alien seeks to enter the United States -- 
(I) 
 for a tenured position (or tenure-track position) within a 
university or institution of higher education to teach in the 
academic area, 
(11) 
 for a comparable position with a university or institution of 
higher education to conduct research in the area, or 
(111) for a comparable position to conduct research in the area with 
a department, division, or institute of a private employer, if the 
department, division, or institute employs at least 3 persons full- 
time in research activities and has achieved documented 
accomplishments in an academic field. 
Page 3 
The regulation at 8 C.F.R. 5 204.5(i)(3)(iii) provides that a petition must be accompanied by: 
An offer of employment from a prospective United States employer. 
 A labor 
certification is not required for this classification. The offer of employment shall be in 
the form of a letter from: 
(A) A United States university or institution of higher learning offering the alien 
a tenured or tenure-track teaching position in the alien's academic field; 
(B) A United States university or institution of higher learning offering the alien 
a permanent research position in the alien's academic field; or 
(C) A department, division, or institute of a private employer offering the alien a 
permanent research position in the alien's academic field. The department, 
division, or institute must demonstrate that it employs at least three persons full- 
time in research positions, and that it has achieved documented accomplishments 
in an academic field. 
(Emphasis added.) Black's Law Dictionary 11 11 (7th ed. 1999) defines "offer" as "the act or an 
instance of presenting something for acceptance" or "a display of willingness to enter into a contract 
on specified terms, made in a way that would lead a reasonable person to understand that an 
acceptance, having been sought, will result in a binding contract." Black's Law Dictionary does not 
define "offeror" or "offeree." The online law dictionary by American Lawyer Media (ALM), 
available at www.law.com, defines offer as "a specific proposal to enter into an agreement with 
another. An offer is essential to the formation of an enforceable contract. An offer and acceptance of 
the offer creates the contract." Significantly, the same dictionary defines offeree as "a person or 
entity to whom an offer to enter into a contract is made by another (the offeror)," and offeror as "a 
person or entity who makes a specific proposal to another (the offeree) to enter into a contract." 
(Emphasis added.) 
In light of the above, we concur with the director that the ordinary meaning of an "offer7' requires that it 
be made to the offeree, not a third party. As such, regulatory language requiring that the offer be made 
"to the beneficiary" would simply be redundant. Thus, a letter addressed to Citizenship and 
Immigration Services (CIS) affirming the beneficiary's employment is not a job ofer within the 
ordinary meaning of that phrase. 
The regulation at 8 C.F.R. 5 204.5(i)(2), provides, in pertinent part: 
Permanent, in reference to a research position, means either tenured, tenure track, or for 
a term of indefinite or unlimited duration, and in which the employee will ordinarily 
have an expectation of continued employment unless there is good cause for 
termination. 
Page 4 
On Part 6 of the petition, the petitioner indicat 
 mployment was a permanent 
position. The petitioner submitted a letter from 
 "To Whom it May Concern" 
expressing an intention to employ the beneficiary long term. In response to the director's request for 
additional evidence, the petitioner submitted a September 8, 2005 letter from - 
offering the beneficiary a "hll-time ongoing research position." This letter is dated after the filing of 
the petition, July 6,2004. The director concluded that this letter was insufficient. 
On appeal, the petitioner submits a new letter from 
 to the beneficiary explaining that the 
employment is unlimited or indefinite and not tied to a specific grant. 
The earliest job offer in the record is the September 8, 2005 letter to the beneficiary. As stated 
above, this letter is dated after the petition was filed and, as such, is not evidence of the petitioner's 
eligibility as of the date of filing. See 8 C.F.R. 
 103.2@)(12); Matter of Katigbak, 14 I&N Dec. 45, 
49 (Reg. Cornm. 1971). Thus, the petitioner has not submitted the required initial evidence, a job offer 
that predates the filing of the petition. 
The burden of proof in these proceedings rests solely with the petitioner. Section 291 of the Act, 
8 U.S.C. 5 1361. The petitioner has not met that burden. Accordingly, the appeal will be dismissed. 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed.