dismissed H-1B Case: Accounting

US. Department of Homeland Security 
20 Mass Ave., N.W., Rm. A3042 
Washington, DC 20529 
U. S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
FILE: WAC 03 255 50590 Office: CALIFORNIA SERVICE CENTER Date: SEp g 1 2005 
PETITION: Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker Pursuant to Section lOl(a)(l5)(H)(i)(b) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. 5 1 10 1 (a)(lS)(H)(i)(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. 
Robert P. Wiemann, Director 
Administrative Appeals Office 
WAC 03 255 50590 
Page 2 
DISCUSSION: The director of the service center denied the nonimmigrant visa petition and the matter is now 
before the Administrative Appeals Office (MO) on appeal. The appeal will be dismissed. The petition will be 
denied. 
The petitioner is a charter bus and tour operator that seeks to employ the beneficiary as an accountant. The 
petitioner, therefore, endeavors to classifjr the beneficiary as a nonimmigrant worker in a specialty occupation 
pursuant to section 10 l(a)(lS)(H)(i)(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act), 8 U.S.C. 
§ 1 lOl(a)(15)(H)(i)(b). 
The director denied the petition on the ground that the proffered position is not a specialty occupation. On 
appeal, counsel submits a brief and additional evidence. 
Section 214(i)(l) of the Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1184(i)(l), defines the term "specialty occupation" as an occupation 
that requires: 
(A) theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge, and 
(B) attainment of a bachelor's or higher degree in the specific specialty (or its equivalent) 
as a minimum for entry into the occupation in the United States. 
Pursuant to 8 C.F.R. 5 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A), to qualify as a specialty occupation, the position must meet one of the 
following criteria: 
(I) A baccalaureate or higher degree or its equivalent is normally the minimum requirement 
for entry into the particular position; 
(2) The degree requirement is common to the industry in parallel positions among similar 
organizations or, in the alternative, an employer may show that its particular position is 
so complex or unique that it can be performed only by an individual with a degree; 
(3) The employer normally requires a degree or its equivalent for the position; or 
(4) The nature of the specific duties is so specialized and complex that knowledge required 
to perform the duties is usually associated with the attainment of a baccalaureate or 
higher degree. 
Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) interprets the term "degree" in the criteria at 8 C.F.R. 
5 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A) to mean not just any baccalaureate or higher degree, but one in a specific specialty that is 
directly related to the proffered position. 
The record of proceeding before the AAO contains: (1) Form 1-129 and supporting documentation; (2) the 
director's request for additional evidence; (3) the petitioner's response to the director's request; (4) the 
WAC 03 255 50590 
Page 3 
director's denial letter; and (5) Form I-290B and supporting documentation. The AAO reviewed the record in 
its entirety before issuing its decision. 
The petitioner is seelng the beneficiary's services as an accountant. Evidence of the beneficiary's duties 
includes: the Form 1-129; the attachments accompanying the Form 1-129; the petitioner's support letter; and 
the petitioner's response to the director's request for evidence. According to this evidence, the beneficiary 
would perform duties that entail handling accounts receivable (collection and posting, preparation of invoices 
and bank deposits, follow-up on payments fkom clients, and running and mailing statements), accounts 
payable (posting payables, checks run processing, documentation of processes, working with vendors and 
suppliers to verify charges and purchases), the general ledger (maintaining the general ledger, documenting 
processes, and preparing and posting journal entries), cash management (petty cash custodian, preparing bank 
reconciliation), payroll (verifying employee time sheets, preparing pay checks, documenting processes, 
federal and state payroll taxes), and financial record keeping (preparing profit and loss statement, cost 
analysis and cash flow statements, quarterly tax returns (IFTA taxes), PUC taxes, and workmen's 
compensation audit return. The petitioner seeks to employ the beneficiary who holds, according to the 
International Education Research Foundation, Inc., the educational equivalency to a bachelor's degree in 
business administration. 
The director stated that although many of the proposed duties include those of an accountant, the majority of 
the duties reflect those of accounting clerks and bookkeepers, which are occupations that do not require a 
specific bachelor's degree. The director emphasized that since the employer does not employ a bookkeeper 
or accounting clerk the beneficiary would perform these duties. The director stated that when determining 
whether a position qualifies as a specialty occupation, the actual duties to be performed are determinative and 
not the job title. The director found that the evidence of record was not persuasive in showing that the job 
offered could not be performed by an experienced person whose educational training fell short of a bachelor's 
degree, and that not all of the described duties are complex enough to require the level of knowledge of a 
specialty occupation. 
On appeal, counsel narrates the proposed duties, states they are complex and sophisticated, and equates them 
to those of an accountant. Counsel states that the proposed position resembles that of an accountant as that 
occupation is described in the Department of Labor's (DOL) Occupational Outlook Handbook (the 
Handbook), and the Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT). Counsel refers to and asserts that the 
submitted job postings show that businesses of different sizes require the services of an accountant with a 
bachelor's degree to perform similar duties to those of the proposed position. According to counsel, the job 
postings reflect diverse duties, demonstrating that accountants perform various tasks in the corporate setting, 
including what the director construes as "bookkeeping" responsibilities. Counsel maintains that the director's 
sole reliance on the Handbook to evaluate an accountant's duties is misplaced. Counsel states that 
bookkeepers and accountinglauditing clerks are lower-level financial record keepers, and that the Handbook 
and the DOT do not describe the duties of these occupations as including auditing and analyzing financial 
statements. Counsel asserts that the director erroneously presumed that certain accounting duties must be 
performed for the petitioner, and that these duties would be performed by the beneficiary because the 
petitioner does not employ bookkeeping clerks. Counsel states that based on the complex financial 
WAC 03 255 50590 
Page 4 
transactions and fiscal responsibilities of the proposed position, the petitioner requires the services of an 
accountant. Counsel states that the job postings reveal that an accountant carries out sophisticated financial 
analysis and prepares reports, and also carries financial duties that the director narrowly construes as too low- 
level for an accountant to perform. Counsel stresses that CIS previously approved an H-1B petition submitted 
on the beneficiary's behalf by the petitioner for the same position; thus, CIS had already determined that the 
proposed position is a specialty occupation. Counsel states that the degree requirement is common to the 
industry, as reflected in the job postings; and that the petitioner normally requires a bachelor's degree for an 
accountant, as reflected in the prior H-1B case. 
Upon review of the record, the petitioner has established none of the four criteria outlined in 8 C.F.R. 
3 2 14.2(h)(4)(iii)(A). Therefore, the proffered position is not a specialty occupation. 
Counsel noted that CIS approved a petition that had been previously filed on behalf of the beneficiary by the 
petitioner. The director's decision does not indicate whether he reviewed the prior approval of the other 
nonimmigrant petition. If the previous nonimrnigrant petition was approved based on the same assertions that 
are contained in the current record, the approval would constitute material and gross error on the part of the 
director. The AAO is not required to approve applications or petitions where eligibility has not been 
demonstrated, merely because of prior approvals that may have been erroneous. See, e.g. Matter of Church 
Scientology International, 19 I&N Dec. 593, 597 (Comm. 1988). It would be absurd to suggest that CIS or 
any agency must treat acknowledged errors as binding precedent. Sussex Engg. Ltd. v. Montgomery, 825 F.2d 
1084, 1090 (6th Cir. 1987), cert. denied, 485 U.S. 1008 (1988). Furthermore, the AAOts authority over the 
service centers is comparable to the relationshp between a court of appeals and a district court. Even if a 
service center director had approved the nonimrnigrant petition on behalf of the beneficiary, the AAO would 
not be bound to follow the contradictory decision of a service center. Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra v. 
INS, 2000 WL 282785 (E.D. La.), affd, 248 F.3d 1139 (5th Cir. 2001), cert. denied, 122 S.Ct. 51 (2001). 
The prior approval does not preclude CIS from denying an extension of the original visa petition based on a 
reassessment of the petitioner's qualifications. Texas A&M Univ. v. Upchurch, 99 Fed. Appx. 556, 2004 WL 
1240482 (5th Cir. 2004). 
The AAO now considers the criteria at 8 C.F.R. 43 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(I) and (2): a baccalaureate or higher 
degree or its equivalent is the normal minimum requirement for entry into the particular position; a degree 
requirement is common to the industry in parallel positions among similar organizations; or a particular 
position is so complex or unique that it can be performed only by an individual with a degree. Factors often 
considered by CIS when determining these criteria include: whether the Handbook reports that the industry 
requires a degree; whether the industry's professional association has made a degree a minimum entry 
requirement; and whether letters or affidavits from firms or individuals in the industry attest that such firms 
"routinely employ and recruit only degreed individuals." See Shanti, Inc. v. Reno, 36 F. Supp. 2d 1151, 1165 
(D.Minn. 1999)(quoting Hird/Blaker Corp. v. Sava, 712 F. Supp. 1095,1102 (S.D.N.Y. 1989)). 
In determining whether a position qualifies as a specialty occupation, CIS looks beyond the title of the 
position and determines, from a review of the duties of the position and any supporting evidence, whether the 
WAC 03 255 50590 
Page 5 
position actually requires the theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge, 
and the attainment of a baccalaureate degree in a specific specialty as the minimum for entry into the 
occupation as required by the Act. 
On appeal, counsel states that the proposed position parallels that of an accountant as that position is 
described in the DOT. The DOT'S SVP rating does not indicate whether a particular occupation requires the 
attainment of a baccalaureate or higher degree, or its equivalent, in a specific specialty as a minimum for 
entry into the occupation. An SVP rating and a Job Zone category are meant to indicate only the total number 
of years of vocational preparation required for a particular position. Neither classification describes how 
those years are to be divided among training, formal education, and experience, nor specifies the particular 
type of degree, if any, that a position would require. 
Counsel also refers to the Handbook to show that the proposed position resembles an accountant. The AAO 
often turns to the Handbook for information about the nature of a particular occupation and the education, 
training, and experience normally required to enter into and advance within the occupation. The Handbook 
reveals that the director correctly concluded that the proposed position is similar to that of bookkeeping, 
accounting, auditing and financial clerks. The Handbook describes these occupations as follows: 
Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks are an organization's financial recordkeepers. 
They update and maintain one or more accounting records, including those that tabulate 
expenditures, receipts, accounts payable and receivable, and profit and loss. . . . post debits and 
credits, produce financial statements, and prepare reports and summaries for supervisors 
and managers. . . . handle the payroll, make purchases, prepare invoices, and keep track of 
overdue accounts. 
More advanced accounting clerks may total, balance, and reconcile billing vouchers; ensure 
completeness and accuracy of data on account. . . . They may also review invoices and 
statements to ensure that all information is accurate and complete. . . . Auditing clerks verify 
records of transactions posted by other workers. 
Financial clerks . . . record all amounts coming into or leaving an organization . . . keep track 
of a store's inventory. . . . 
Auditing clerks verify records of transactions posted by other workers. They check figures, 
postings, and documents to ensure that they are correct, mathematically accurate, and properly 
coded. 
The Handbook states: 
Another change in these occupations is the growing use of financial software to enter and 
manipulate data. Computer programs automatically perform calculations that previously were 
done manually. Computers also enable clerks to access data within files more quickly and 
even generate statements automatically. . . . 
WAC 03 255 50590 
Page 6 
The beneficiary will handle accounts receivable (collection and posting, preparation of invoices and bank 
deposits, follow-up on payments from clients, and running and mailing statements), accounts payable (posting 
payables, checks run processing, documentation of processes, working with vendors and suppliers to verify 
charges and purchases), the general ledger (maintaining the general ledger, documenting processes, and 
preparing and posting journal entries), cash management (petty cash custodian, preparing bank 
reconciliation), payroll (verifLing employee time sheets, preparing pay checks, documenting processes, 
federal and state payroll taxes), and financial record keeping (preparing profit and loss statement, cost 
analysis and cash flow statements, quarterly tax returns (IFTA taxes), PUC taxes, and workmen's 
compensation audit return). Similarly, bookkeeping, accounting, auditing, and financial clerks total, balance, 
and reconcile billing vouchers; produce financial statements and prepare reports and summaries for 
supervisors and managers; maintain accounting records for the profit and loss statement; handle accounts 
payable, accounts receivable, and payroll; check figures, postings, and documents to ensure that they are 
accurate and properly coded; review invoices and statements; and update and maintain one or more accounting 
records. 
The Handbook conveys that employers require most financial clerks to have at least a high school diploma; 
and for bookkeepers and accounting clerks, they often require an associate's degree in business or accounting. 
Counsel asserts that bookkeepers and accountinglauditing clerks do not audit and analyze financial 
statements, and that based on the complex financial transactions and fiscal responsibilities of the proposed 
position, the petitioner requires the services of an accountant. Given the level of income generated by the 
petitioner, which has a direct and substantial bearing on the scope, complexity, and depth of the proposed 
duties, the AAO finds that the proposed position does not involve complex financial transactions and fiscal 
responsibilities. Responsibility for income of $800,000, which the petitioner generated, assumedly in 2002, 
differs vastly from responsibility associated with a far larger income. While the evidence of record indicates 
that the proposed duties require some knowledge and application of accounting principles, given the income 
generated by the petitioner and the description of the proposed duties, the evidence does not establish that the 
proposed position requires highly specialized knowledge that is at the baccalaureate-level in accounting. 
Going on record without supporting documentary evidence is not sufficient for purposes of meeting the 
burden of proof in these proceedings. Matter of SofBci, 22 I&N Dec. 158, 165 (Comm. 1998) (citing Matter 
of Treasure Craft of California, 14 I&N Dec. 190 (Reg. Comm. 1972)). 
In addition, for a junior accounting position, the Handbook reports that a bachelor's degree is not required. 
The Handbook states: 
Many graduates of junior colleges and business and correspondence schools, as well as 
bookkeepers and accounting clerks who meet the education and experience requirements set 
by their employers, can obtain junior accounting positions and advance to positions with 
more responsibilities by demonstrating their accounting slulls on the job. 
WAC 03 255 50590 
Page 7 
Furthermore, the Handbook states that tax preparers that prepare tax returns for individuals or small 
businesses but do not have the background or responsibilities of an accredited or certified public accountant, 
do not require a bachelor's degree; instead, they require moderate-term on-the-job training. 
The AAO also points out that the petitioner indicates that a bachelor's degree in business administration is 
appropriate for the proposed position. However, as previously mentioned, CIS interprets the term "degree" 
in the criteria at 8 C.F.R. 9 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A) to mean not just any baccalaureate or higher degree, but one in 
a specific specialty that is directly related to the proffered position. As indicated in Matter of Micheal Hertz 
Assocs., 19 I&NDec. 558, 560 (Comm. 1988), for a position to qualify as a specialty occupation: 
A petitioner must establish that the position realistically requires knowledge, both theoretical 
and applied, which is almost exclusively obtained through studies at an institution of higher 
learning. The depth of knowledge and length of studies required are best typified by a degree 
granted by such institution at the baccalaureate level. It must be demonstrated that the 
position requires a precise and specific course of study which relates directly and closely to 
the position in question. Since there must be a close corollary between the required 
specialized studies and the position, the requirement of a degree of generalized title, such as 
business administration or liberal arts, without further specification, does not establish 
eligibility. 
Here, the petitioner requires a bachelor's degree in business administration without indicating a specific field of 
4 
concentration; this does not satisfy the requirement that the bachelor's degree be in a speciJc specialty that is 
directly related to the proposed position. 
For the reasons discussed above, the evidence in the record is insufficient to satisfy the regulation at 8 C.F.R. 
9 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(I): that a baccalaureate or higher degree or its equivalent in a specific specialty is the 
normal minimum requirement for entry into the particular position. 
The petitioner submits job postings to satisfy the first alternative prong at 8 C.F.R. 9 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(2), 
which requires that the petitioner establish that a specific degree requirement is common to the industry in 
parallel positions among similar organizations. Counsel asserts that the job postings show that businesses of 
different sizes require the services of an accountant with a bachelor's degree to perform similar duties to those 
of the proposed position. The postings are not persuasive in establishing the first alternative prong of this 
criterion as the regulation indicates that the petitioner, a charter bus and tour operator with 10 employees, 
must be similar to the businesses in the postings. is in the telecommunications 
industry; E*Trade Financial is in the finance industry: and Accounting Principals is in the accounting field. - 
No description is given of , or the company represented b- 
staffing. For theons, the postlngs are note in establishing that a specific degree 
requirement is common to the industry in parallel positions among similar organizations. 
The second alternative prong at 8 C.F.R. 3 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(2) requires that the petitioner show that its 
particular position is so complex or unique that it can be performed only by an individual with a degree in a 
WAC 03 255 50590 
Page 8 
specific specialty. As discussed earlier, the beneficiary's duties parallel those of bookkeeping, accounting, 
auditing and financial clerks as those occupations are delineated in the Handbook. While the evidence of 
record indicates that the proposed duties require some knowledge and application of accounting principles, in 
the context of the income generated by the petitioner, the evidence does not establish the proposed duties as 
so complex or unique as to require a baccalaureate degree in accounting or a related field. Furthermore, as 
previously discussed, the petitioner's acceptance of a bachelor's degree in business administration without 
indicating a specific field of concentration does not satisfy the requirement that the bachelor's degree be in a 
speciJic specialty that is directly related to the proposed position. 
To establish the third criterion at 8 C.F.R. 9 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A), the petitioner must show that it normally 
requires a degree or its equivalent for the position. Counsel points to the previously approved H-1B petition to 
establish this criterion. CIS must examine the ultimate employment of the alien, and determine whether the 
position qualifies as a specialty occupation, however. CJ: Defensor v. Meissner, 201 F. 3d 384 (5" Cir. 2000). 
The critical element is not the title of the position or an employer's self-imposed standards, but whether the 
position actually requires the theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge, 
and the attainment of a baccalaureate or higher degree in the specific specialty as the minimum for entry into 
the occupation as required by the ~ct.' To interpret the regulations any other way would lead to absurd 
results: if CIS were limited to reviewing a petitioner's self-imposed requirements, then any alien with a 
bachelor's degree could be brought into the United States to perform a menial, non-professional, or an 
otherwise non-specialty occupation, so long as the employer required all such employees to have 
baccalaureate or higher degrees. See id. at 388. As already discussed in this decision, the proposed position 
parallels that of bookkeeping, accounting, auditing and financial clerks, which are occupations that do not 
require a bachelor's degree. Moreover, the petitioner's acceptance of a bachelor's degree in business 
administration without indicating a specific field of concentration does not satis6 the requirement that the 
bachelor's degree be in a speciJic specialty that is directly related to the proposed position. 
The fourth criterion at 8 C.F.R. 9 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A) requires that the petitioner establish that the nature of the 
specific duties is so specialized and complex that the knowledge required to perform them is usually 
associated with the attainment of a baccalaureate or higher degree. The AAO has already conveyed that the 
proposed duties correspond to those of bookkeeping, accounting, auditing and financial clerks, which are 
occupations that do not require a bachelor's degree. Even though the evidence of record indicates that the 
proposed position requires some knowledge and application of accounting principles, the evidence does not 
establish duties that are so specialized and complex as to be usually associated with at least a bachelor's 
degree level of knowledge in accounting or a related field. Consequently, the petitioner fails to establish the 
fourth criterion at 8 C.F.R. 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A). 
- 
' The court in Defensor v. Meissner observed that the four criteria at 8 C.F.R. 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A) present 
certain ambiguities when compared to the statutory definition, and "might also be read as merely an additional 
requirement that a position must meet, in addition to the statutory and regulatory definition." See id. at 387. 
WAC 03 255 50590 
Page 9 
As related in the discussion above, the petitioner has failed to establish that the proffered position is a 
specialty occupation. Accordingly, the AAO shall not disturb the director's denial of the petition. 
The burden of proof in these proceedings rests solely with the petitioner. Section 291 of the Act, 8 U.S.C. $ 1361. 
The petitioner has not sustained that burden. 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. The petition is denied.