sustained EB-3 Case: Culinary

MATTER OF B-G- CORP. 
Non-Precedent Decision of the 
Administrative Appeals Office 
DATE: JULY 13,2017 
APPEAL OF NEBRASKA S'ERVICE CENTER DECISION 
PETITION: FORM I-140, IMMIGRANT PETITION FOR ALIEN WORKER 
The Petitioner, a restaurant, seeks to employ the Beneficiary as a cook. It requests classification of the 
Beneficiary as a skilled worker under the third preference immigrant classification. See Immigration 
and Nationality Act, section 203(b)(3)(A)(i), 8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(3)(A)(i). This employment-based 
immigrant classification allows a U.S. employer to sponsor a foreign national for lawful permanent 
resident status to work in a position that requires at least two years of training or experience. 
The Director of the Nebraska Service Center denied the visa petition, concluding that the Petitioner 
had not established its ability to pay the Beneficiary the proffered wage from the priority date of the 
petition onward. 1 
On appeal, the Petitioner asserts that the evidence in the record establishes its ability to pay the 
proffered wage and that the Director did not consider the totality of its financial circumstances in 
reaching his decision. Upon de novo review, we will sustain the appeal. 
The priority date of the petition is April 30, 2001, and the proffered wage is $39,291.20 per year. 
Therefore, the Petitioner must demonstrate its ability to pay the Beneficiary the annual wage of 
$39,291.20 from April30, 2001, onward. 8 C.P.R. § 204.5(g)(2). 
The Director determined that the Petitioner had not established its ability to paylthe proffered wage 
from 2001 through 2005 based on his analysis of the Petitioner's net income and net current assets 
reflected on its federal tax returns, and considering the wages paid to the Beneficiary during that 
period. In 2001, the Petitioner's ne~ income and the Beneficiary's wages were $15,658.20 less than 
the proffered wage. In 2002, the combination of the Beneficiary's wages and the Petitioner's net 
income fell short of the proffered wage by $13,537.20. In 2003 and 2004, these shortfalls were 
$28,891.20 and $18,931.20 respectively. In 2005, the Petitioner's net income and the wages it paid 
the Beneficiary exceed the proffered wage, establishing its ability to pay for that year. 
1 The priority date of a visa petition is the date that the underlying labor certification is filed with the U.S. Department of 
Labor. · 
Matter of B-G- Corp. 
Since the wages paid to the Beneficiary, the Petitioner's net income, and its net current assets do not 
establish the Petitioner's ability to pay the proffered wage from 2001 through 2004, we will evaluate 
its ability to pay the proffered wage considering the totality of circumstances. See Matter of 
Sonegawa, 12 I&N Dec. 612 (Reg'l Comm'r 1967). 
On appeal, the Petitioner, which began operations in 1992, argues that its ability to pay the proffered 
wage during the relevant period is reflected in the increase in its revenues. The Petitioner also 
maintains that the officer compensation paid to its two co-owners during the relevant period 
provided it with sufficient financial resources to pay the proffered wage. 
Shareholders of an S corporation have the authority to allocate the expenses of that corporation for 
various legitimate business purposes, and the compensation of officers is an expense category on the 
federal tax return. Here, the Petitioner's tax returns for the relevant period report a substantial 
amount of compensation paid to its two officers. The Petitioner also submits a letter from its 
president stating his willingness to reduce his compensation by the comparatively small amount 
necessary to meet the proffered wage. 
Therefore, considering the number of years that the Petitioner has been in business, the size of its 
operations, its increasing revenues, and its stated willingness to use part of its substantial officer 
compensation to pay the shortfall between the wages paid to the Beneficiary and its net income, we 
conclude that the Petitioner established its continuing ability to pay the proffered wage beginning on 
the April30, 2001, priority date. " 
Accordingly, we will withdraw the Director's denial ofthe petition and sustain the appeal. 
ORDER: The appeal is sustained. 
Cite as Matter of B-G- Corp., ID# 452580 (AAO July 13, 2017) 
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