dismissed EB-3 Case: Construction

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
MATTER OF H-B- INC. 
Non-Precedent Decision of the 
Administrative Appeals Office 
DATE : AUG . 6, 2019 
APPEAL OF NEBRASKA SERVICE CENTER DECISION 
PETITION: FORM I-140 , IMMIGRANT PETITION FOR ALIEN WORKER 
The Petitioner, a construction company, seeks to employ the Beneficiary as an administrative services 
manager. It requests classification of the Beneficiary as a professional under the third preference 
immigrant classification . Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act) , section 203(b )(3)(A)(ii) , 
8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(3)(A)(ii). This employment-based immigrant classification allows a U.S. 
employer to sponsor a professional with a baccalaureate degree for lawful permanent resident status. 
The Director of the Nebraska Service Center denied the petition, concluding that the record did not 
establish, as required, that the Beneficiary met the minimum educational requirements for the offered 
position. 
On appeal, the Petitioner asserts that the Director erred in concluding that the Beneficiary has not 
attained a bachelor's degree or its foreign equivalent. 
Upon de nova review , we will dismiss the appeal. 
I. THE EMPLOYMENT-BASED IMMIGRATION PROCESS 
Employment-based immigration generally follows a three-step process. First, an employer obtains an 
approved labor certification from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). 1 See section 212(a)(5)(A)(i) 
of the Act, 8 U.S .C. § 1182(a)(5)(A)(i) . By approving the labor certification, the DOL certifies that there 
are insufficient U.S. workers who are able, willing , qualified , and available for the offered position and 
that employing a foreign national in the position will not adversely affect the wages and working 
conditions of domestic workers similarly employed . See section 212(a)(5)(A)(i)(I)-(II) of the 
Act. Second , the employer files an immigrant visa petition with U.S . Citizenship and Immigration 
Services (USCIS). See section 204 of the Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1154. Third, if USC IS approves the petition, 
the foreign national applies for an immigrant visa abroad or, if eligible, adjustment of status in the 
United States . See section 245 of the Act, 8 U.S.C . § 1255 . 
1 The priority date of a petition is the date the DOL accepted the labor certification for proces sing, which in this case is 
July 18, 2017. See 8 C.F.R. § 204.S(d). 
Matter of H-B- Inc. 
II. ANALYSIS 
In this case, the Petitioner requests classification of the Beneficiary as a professional. The regulation at 
8 C.F.R. § 204.5(1)(3)(ii)(C) states, in part: 
If the petition is for a professional, the petition must be accompanied by evidence that 
the alien holds a United States baccalaureate degree or a foreign equivalent degree 
and by evidence that the alien is a member of the professions. Evidence of a 
baccalaureate degree shall be in the form of an official college or university record 
showing the date the baccalaureate degree was awarded and the area of concentration 
of study. 
The regulation at 8 C.F.R. § 204.5(1)(3)(ii)(C) and section 203(b)(3)(A)(ii) of the Act use a singular 
description of the degree required for classification as a professional. In Snapnames.com, Inc. v. Michael 
Chertojf, 2006 WL 3491005 (D. Or. Nov. 30, 2006), the court held that, in professional and advanced 
degree professional cases, where the beneficiary is statutorily required to hold a baccalaureate degree, 
USCIS properly concluded that a single foreign degree or its equivalent is required. See also 
Maramjaya v. USCIS, Civ. Act No. 06-2158 (D.D.C. Mar. 26, 2008)(for professional classification, 
USCIS regulations require the beneficiary to possess a single four-year U.S. bachelor's degree or foreign 
equivalent degree). 
Therefore, a petition for a professional must establish that the beneficiary possesses at least a U.S. 
bachelor's degree or a single foreign equivalent degree from a college or university. A beneficiary must 
also meet all of the requirements of the offered position set forth on the labor certification by the 
priority date of the petition. 8 C.F.R. § 103.2(b)(l), (12); Matter o_f Wing's Tea House, 16 I&N Dec. 
158, 159 (Acting Reg'l Comm'r 1977). 
In this case, the labor certification states that the offered position has the following minimum 
requirements: 
H.4. Education: Bachelor's degree in business. 
H.5. Training: None required. 
H.6. Experience in the job offered: 12 months required. 
H.7. Alternate field of study: None accepted. 
H.8. Alternate combination of education and experience: None accepted. 
H.9. Foreign educational equivalent: Accepted. 
H.10. Experience in an alternate occupation: None accepted. 
H.14. Specific skills or other requirements: Bachelor's in Business ( or foreign degree 
equivalent) plus 1 year Managerial exp. in Administrative Services required. 
The labor certification states that the Beneficiary qualifies for the offered position based on her 
bachelor's degree in business administration from'~----------.-- ...... completed in 2012. 
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Matter of H-B- Inc. 
On appeal, the Petitioner states that it supplied a foreign equivalency from a certified agency and that 
the Director supplied erroneous statutory support and case law to resolve the issue in this case. It 
states that a brief will follow, but we did not receive an additional brief. 
The record contains an evaluation of the Beneficiary's work experience fromlD ~­
The evaluation states that the Beneficiary's over 1 7 years of "professional work experience is 
equivalent to the U.S. degree of Bachelor of Business Administration awarded by a regionally 
accredited university in the United States." The evaluation equated three years of experience to one 
year of education, but that equivalence applies to nonimmigrant H-lB petitions, not to immigrant 
petitions. See 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(D)(5). 2 USCIS may, in its discretion, use as advisory 
opinions statements submitted as expert testimony. However, where an opinion is not in accord with 
other information or is in any way questionable, USCIS is not required to accept or may give less 
weight to that evidence. Matter o_fCaron Int'!, 19 I&N Dec. 791 (Comm'r 1988). 
The labor certification states that the minimum education required for the offered position is a bachelor's 
degree in business or a foreign equivalent degree. The labor certification states that the Petitioner will 
not accept any alternate combination of education or experience. 3 In evaluating the Beneficiary's 
qualifications, USCIS must look to the job offer portion of the labor certification to determine the 
required qualifications for the position. USCIS may not ignore a term of the labor certification, nor 
may it impose additional requirements. See Madany v. Smith, 696 F.2d 1008 (D.C. Cir. 1983); K.R.K. 
Irvine, Inc. v. Landon, 699 F.2d 1006 (9th Cir. 1983); Stewart Infra-Red Commissary of Mass., Inc. v. 
Coomey, 661 F .2d 1 (1st Cir. 1981 ). In this case, the Petitioner relies on the Beneficiary's experience 
as being equivalent to a U.S. bachelor's degree, but the labor certification does not permit an alternate 
combination of education and experience as an alternative to a degree. The Petitioner has not 
established that the Beneficiary has a single U.S. bachelor's degree in business or foreign equivalent 
degree, as is required by the labor certification. 
Further, the Petitioner cannot rely on experience alone to qualify the Beneficiary as a professional. 
Where the analysis of the beneficiary's credentials relies on work experience alone, the result is the 
"equivalent" of a bachelor's degree rather than a full U.S. baccalaureate or foreign equivalent degree 
required for classification as a professional. The evaluation submitted by the Petitioner does not 
establish that the Beneficiary possesses a single degree from a college or university that is at least a U.S. 
baccalaureate degree or a foreign equivalent degree, as is required for professional classification. 
After reviewing all of the evidence in the record, we conclude that the Petitioner has not established 
that the Beneficiary has a U.S. baccalaureate degree or a single foreign equivalent degree from a 
college or university. Therefore, we agree with the Director's decision which found that the 
Beneficiary does not meet the educational requirements of the offered position. We also find that 
2 The regulation at 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(D)(5) defines for purposes ofH-lB nonimmigrant visa classification the 
"equivalence to completion of a college degree" as including, in certain cases, a specific combination of education and 
experience. The regulations pertaining to the immigrant classification sought in this matter do not contain similar language. 
3 The professional classification does not permit a combination of education, training, and experience. See 8 C.F.R. § 
204.5(1)(3)(ii)(C); section 203(b )(3)(A)(ii) of the Act. Thus, if the Petitioner were to claim that the labor certification 
permits a combination of education. training, and experience, the petition would not qualify for the professional 
classification. 
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Matter of H-B- Inc. 
the Beneficiary does not qualify for classification as a professional under section 203(b )(3)(A)(ii) of 
the Act. 
III. CONCLUSION 
In visa petition proceedings, it is the petitioner's burden to establish eligibility for the immigration 
benefit sought. Section 291 of the Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1361. The Petitioner has not met that burden. 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. 
Cite as Matter ofH-B-Inc., ID# 5438408 (AAO Aug. 6, 2019) 
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