dismissed EB-3 Case: Software Engineering

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
MATTER OF N-C-0- INC 
Non-Precedent Decision of the 
Administrative Appeals Office 
DATE: SEPT. 29.2017 
APPEAL OF NEBRASKA SERVICE CENTER DECISION 
PETITION: I-140, IMMIGRANT PETITION FOR ALIEN WORKER 
The Petitioner, an information technology consulting and software development company, seeks to 
employ the Beneficiary as a software engineer. It requests classification of the Beneficiary as a 
professional under the third preference immigrant classification. See 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. The Director found that the 
Beneficiary does not have a U.S. bachelor's degree or a foreign equivalent degree. and therefore does 
not meet the minimum educational requirement of the labor certification and does not quality for 
classification as a professional under the Act. 
On appeal the Petitioner submits a brief and supporting documents. The Petitioner assetts that the 
Beneficiary has the foreign equivalent of a U.S. bachelor's degree, thus meeting the educational 
requirement of the labor certification and qualifYing him for classification as a professional. 
Upon de novo review, we will dismiss the appeal. 
I. LAW 
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. 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 tiles an immigrant visa petition with U.S. 
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). See section 204 ofthe Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1154. Third, 
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The date the labor certification is filed is called the "priority date." See 8 C.F.R. ~ 204.5(d). The Petitioner must 
establish that all eligibility requirements for the petition have been satisfied from the priority date onward. 
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Matter of N-C-G- Inc 
if USCIS 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. 
The regulation at 8 C.F.R. § 204.5(1)(3)(ii)(C) states, in pertinent part: 
If the petition is for a professional, the petition must be accompanied by evidence that 
the [beneficiary] holds a United States baccalaureate degree or a foreign equivalent 
degree . . . . Evidence of a baccalaureate degree shall be in the form of an otlicial 
college or university record showing the date the baccalaureate degree was awarded 
and the area of concentration of study. 
A beneficiary must also meet all of the education, training, experience, and other requirements of the 
labor certification as of the petition's priority date. See Matter of Win1(s Tea House, 16 I&N Dec. 
158, 159 (Acting Reg'l. Comm'r 1977). 
II. ANALYSIS 
The Petitioner's Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker, was accompanied by an ETA 
Form 9089, Application for Permanent Employment Certification (labor certification), with a 
priority date of December 2, 2015. Section H of the labor certification stated the following with 
respect to the minimum requirements for the job of software engineer: 
4. 
4-B. 
5. 
6. 
6-A. 
7. 
8. 
9. 
10. 
Education: Minimum level required: 
Major Field of Study: 
Is training required for the job? 
Is experience in the job offered required? 
How long? 
Is an alternate field of study acceptable? 
Is an alternate combination of education 
and experience acceptable? 
Is a foreign educational equivalent acceptable? 
Is experience in an alternate occupation acceptable? 
Bachelor's degree 
Engineering, Computer Science, 
Business, Science. or equivalent 
No 
Yes 
12 months 
No 
No 
Yes 
No 
Section J of the labor certification states that the Beneficiary earned a bachelor"s degree in computer 
science in 2005 at the m Pakistan. 
As evidence of the Beneficiary's educational credentials, the Petitioner submitted copies of the 
Beneficiary's degree certificate from which states that the Beneficiary, "having fulfilled the 
prescribed requirements in the examination held in February 2006," was awarded a "BS in Computer 
Science" on June 16, 2007. No transcript or other evidence of specific coursework was submitted. 
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Matter ofN-C-G- Inc 
In denying the petition the Director utilized the Educational Database for Global Education (EDGE), 
created by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Ofticers (AACRA0), 2 
whose section on Pakistan contains an entry for bachelor of science degrees. EDGE states that a 
bachelor of science degree from Pakistan is comparable to two to three years of university study in 
the United States. Based on this information from EDGE, the Director concluded that the 
Beneficiary's bachelor of science degree from is not equivalent to aU .S. bachelor's degree. 
On appeal the Petitioner submits two academic equivalency evaluations of the Beneficiary's 
education: one from and the other from 
of science in computer science from 
from a U.S. college or university. 
Both evaluations conclude that the Beneficiary's bachelor 
is equivalent to a bachelor's degree in computer science 
The evaluation claims that the Beneficiary completed a four-year degree program in 2006 and 
lists the courses he allegedly completed. However, no transcripts or other documentation of the 
Beneficiary's coursework was submitted with the evaluation. Thus, neither the duration of the 
Beneficiary's degree program nor the specific courses taken are corroborated in the evaluation. 
As for the evaluation, it also claims that the Beneficiary completed a four-year degree 
program at asserts that the Beneficiary's degree program comprised eight semesters 
of study from 2001 to 2005 and identifies some of the Petitioner's courses. Like the 
evaluation, however, the evaluation is deficient because it is not supported by any 
transcripts or other 
documentation corroborating its claims regarding the Beneficiary's years of 
study and the courses he took. claims that its equivalency evaluation is confirmed by 
EDGE. It refers to the EDGE credential advice pertaining to bachelor of arts, bachelor of science in 
engineering, and bachelor of engineering/technology degrees in Pakistan which are awarded after 
four years of tertiary study and, per EDGE, comparable to bachelor's degrees in the United States. 
The Beneficiary's degree in computer science, however, is not one of the three degree types covered 
by this EDGE credential advice. Nor does the record show that it was a four-year degree. Contrary 
to claim, therefore, its equivalency evaluation of the Beneficiary's degree is not 
confirmed by EDGE. 
Evaluations of academic credentials by evaluation services are utilized by USCIS as advisory 
opinions only. Where an opinion is not in accord with other information or is in any way 
2 AACRAO is described on its website as "a nonprofit, voluntary, professional association of more than 11,000 higher 
education admissions and registration professionals who represent more than 2,600 institutions and agencies in the 
United States and in over 40 countries." AACRAO, http://www.aacrao.org/about (last accessed September 26, 
20 17). "The mission of [AACRAO] is to provide professional development, guidelines, and voluntary standards to be 
used by higher education officials regarding the best practices in records management, admissions, enrollment 
management, administrative information technology, and student services.'' /d. EDGE is ·'a valuable resource for 
evaluating educational credentials earned in foreign systems." AACRAO EDGE, http://aacrao.org/aacrao­
solutions/aacrao-international/aacrao-edge/edge (last accessed September 26, 20 17). We consider EDGE to be a reliable, 
peer-reviewed source of information about foreign degree equivalencies. 
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Matter of N-C-G- Inc 
questionable, USCIS is not required to accept it or may give it less weight. See Matter olSea. Inc .. 
19 I&N Dec. 817 (Comm'r 1988). For the reasons discussed above, we find that the and 
evaluations do not establish that the Beneficiary's degree from is the foreign 
equivalent of a U.S. bachelor's degree. 
A bachelor's degree in the United States generally comprises four years of study. See Matter ol 
Shah, 17 I&N Dec. 244, 245 (Reg'! Comm'r 1977). The evidence of record does not show that the 
Beneficiary's bachelor of science degree in computer science from was a four-year degree 
program. No documentation has been submitted to show the beginning and end dates of the 
Beneficiary's studies at the number of semesters he studied, the courses he completed, and the 
credits he amassed. Thus, the Petitioner has not established that the Beneficiary's 
degree from IS 
the foreign equivalent of a U.S. bachelor's degree. 
III. CONCLUSION 
The Petitioner has not established 
that the Beneficiary has a foreign degree that is equivalent to a U.S. 
bachelor's degree, as required by the terms of the labor certification and to qualify for classification as a 
professional under section 203(b)(3)(A)(ii) of the Act. Accordingly, we will dismiss the appeal. 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. 
Cite as Matter ofN-C-G-lnc, ID# 673254 (AAO Sept. 29, 2017) 
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