dismissed H-1B Case: Computer Systems

U.S. Department of Homeland Security 
20 Mass. Ave., N.W., Rm. A3042 
Washington, DC 20529 
U. S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
FILE: 
 WAC 03 046 5 1324 
 Office: CALIFORNIA SERVICE CENTER Date: f €6 2 1 2006 
IN RE: Petitioner: 
Beneficiary: 
PETITION: 
 Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker Pursuant to Section lOl(a)(lS)(H)(i)(b) of the 
Immigration and Natiomfity Act, 8 U.S.C. 5 I I Ol(a)(l 5)(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 03 046 5 1324 
Page 2 
DISCUSSION: The service center director denied the nonimmigrant visa petition and the matter is now 
before the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) on appeal. The appeal will be dismissed. The petition will 
be denied. 
The petitioner is a carrier and provider of long distance telephone services that seeks to employ the beneficiary as 
a computer systems administrator. The petitioner endeavors to classify the beneficiary as a nonirnrnigrant worker 
in a specialty occupation pursuant to section lOl(a)(lS)(H)(i)(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (the 
Act), 8 U.S.C. 9 1 lOl(a)(lS)(H)(i)(b). 
The director denied the petition because the proffered position does not qualify as a specialty occupation. On 
appeal, counsel submits a brief and additional information stating that the offered position qualifies as a specialty 
occupation. 
The issue to be discussed in this proceeding is whether the proffered position qualifies as a specialty 
occupation. 
Section I0 l(a)(l S)(H)(i)(b) of the Act, 8 U.S.C. 5 1 10 l(a)(l S)(H)(i)(b), provides, in part, for the 
classification of qualified nonimmigrant aliens who are coming temporarily to the United States to perform 
services in a specialty occupation. 
Section 2 14(i)(l) of the Act, 8 U.S.C. $ 1 184(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. 
The term "specialty occupation" is further defined at 8 C.F.R. 5 214.2(h)(4)(ii) as: 
[A]n occupation which requires theoretical and practical application of a body of highly 
specialized knowledge in fields of human endeavor including, but not limited to, architecture, 
engineering, mathematics, physical sciences, social sciences, medicine and health, education, 
business specialties, accounting, law, theology, and the arts, and which requires the attainment of 
a bachelor's degree or higher in a specific specialty, or its equivalent, as a minimum for entry 
into the occupation in the United States. 
Pursuant to 8 C.F.R. $ 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; 
WAC 03 046 5 1324 
Page 3 
(3) The employer normally requires a degree or its equivalent for the position; or 
(4) The nature of the specific duties are 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) the 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 
director's denial letter; and (5) the Form I-290B with supporting documentation. The MO reviewed the 
record in its entirety before issuing its decision. 
The petitioner is seeking the beneficiary's services as a computer systems administrator. Evidence of the 
beneficiary's duties includes the Form 1-129 petition with attachment and the petitioner's response to the 
director's request for evidence. According to this evidence the beneficiary would: 
Provide on-site administrative support for software users at the petitioner's central office; 
Monitor the daily performance of the petitioner's computer systems and evaluate the software 
programs; 
Maintain computer hardware and software, analyze problems, and monitor the network to ensure 
availability to system users; 
Gather data to identify customer needs which will be used to identify, interpret, and evaluate system 
and network requirements; 
Monitor and adjust performance of existing networks and survey the current computer site to 
determine future needs; 
Write training manuals/procedure manuals as system needs require; 
Communicate with technicians and engineers in other countries to enable interface and testing 
between parties' equipment; 
Clean, install or modify the petitioner's computer systems as needed; and 
Troubleshoot problems as reported by users, run diagnostic programs for problem resolution and 
track errors if actual repair and completion must be handled by outside vendors. 
WAC 03 046 51324 
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The petitioner does not state that it requires a degree in a specific specialty for entry into the proffered 
position. It does state in its letter of October 15, 2003 that it requires applicants for the offered position to be 
degree holders, and that individuals with experience in handling telecommunication or computer systems is 
required, especially individuals with engineering or similar experience. The petitioner's posted job 
advertisement for the offered position states that a bachelor's degree in engineering is required, but that an 
associate's degree may also be considered. 
Upon review of the record, the petitioner has failed to establish that the proffered position qualifies as a 
specialty occupation. The AAO routinely consults the Department of Labor's Occupational Outlook 
Handbook (Handbook) for information about the duties and educational requirements of particular 
occupations. The duties of the proffered position are essentially those of computer support specialists. The 
Handbook notes that there is no universally accepted way to prepare for a job as a computer support 
specialist, but that many employers prefer to hire persons with some formal college education. A bachelor's 
degree in computer science or information systems is a prerequisite for some jobs; however, other jobs may 
require only a computer-related associate degree. For systems administrators, many employers seek 
applicants with bachelor's degrees, although not necessarily in a computer-related field. The petitioner has 
not, therefore, established that a baccalaureate or higher degree in a specific specialty, or its equivalent, is 
normally the minimum requirement for entry into the proffered position. 8 C.F.R. $ 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(I). 
Although some employers may require a baccalaureate level education for these positions, many are regularly 
filled with individuals having less than a baccalaureate level education, and employees with degrees in a 
variety of majors find employment in the occupation. 
The petitioner has not established that a degree requirement in a specific specialty is common to the industry 
in parallel positions among similar organizations. 
 8 C.F.R. $ 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(2). 
 In support of this 
proposition, the petitioner submitted copies of several job advertisements. The advertisements submitted, 
however, do not establish the referenced criterion. Of the seven jobs advertised, only one requires a 
bachelor's degree, and it does not state that the degree must be in any particular discipline. Further, that 
advertisement is not from an organization similar in nature to that of the petitioner. Two of the remaining 
advertisements state that a bachelor's degree in an unspecified discipline is preferred, not required. Two 
advertisements require only an associate's degree. The remaining two advertisements require experience only 
and make no mention of educational requirements. The advertisements do not establish that a degree in a 
specific specialty is common to the industry in parallel positions among similar organizations, but in fact 
confirm the educational requirements for the position set forth in the Handbook, that a baccalaureate level 
education in a specific specialty is not common to the industry for the position offered. 
The petitioner does not allege that it normally requires a degree or its equivalent for the offered position, and 
offers no evidence in this regard as the position is new with the company. The petitioner has not established 
the criterion at 8 C.F.R. $ 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(3). 
Finally, the duties of the offered position are not so complex or unique that they can be performed only by an 
individual with a degree in a particular specialty. Nor are they so specialized or complex that knowledge 
required to perform them is usually associated with the attainment of a baccalaureate or higher degree in a 
specific specialty. The duties are routine for computer support specialists and systems administrators. The 
petitioner does assert that a previous agency decision has classified the offered position as a specialty 
WAC 03 046 51324 
Page 5 
occupation. 
 This reference, however, will not sustain the petitioner's burden of establishing H-1B 
qualification in the petition now before the AAO. This record of proceeding does not contain the entire 
record of proceeding in the petition referred to by counsel. Accordingly, no comparison of the positions can 
be made. 
 Each nonimmigrant petition is a separate proceeding with a separate record. 
 See 8 C.F.R. 
$ 103.8(d). 
 In making a determination of statutory eligibility, the AAO is limited to the information 
contained in the record of proceeding. See 8 C.F.R. 5 103.2(b)(16)(ii). It warrants noting that Congress 
intended this visa classification for aliens that are to be employed in an occupation that requires the 
theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge. Congress specifically stated 
that such an occupation would require, as a nlinirnum qualification, a baccalaureate or higher degree in the 
specialty. CIS regularly approves H-1B petitions for qualified aliens who are to be employed as engineers, 
computer scientists, certified public accountants, college professors, and other such professions. These 
occupations all require a baccalaureate degree in the specialty occupation as a minimum for entry into the 
occupation and fairly represent the types of professions that Congress contemplated when it created that visa 
category. In the present matter, the petitioner has offered the beneficiary a position as a computer systems 
administrator. For the reasons discussed above, the proffered position does not require the attainment of a 
baccalaureate or higher degree in a specific specialty as a minimum for entry into the occupation, and 
approval of a petition for another beneficiary based on identical facts would constitute material error, gross 
error, and a violation of 8 C.F.R. $ 214.2 paragraph (h). The petitioner has failed to establish the referenced 
criteria at 8 C.F.R. §$ 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(2) or (4). 
The petitioner has failed to establish that the offered position meets any of the criteria listed at 8 C.F.R. 
5 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A). 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. 
5 1361. The petitioner has not sustained that burden and the appeal shall accordingly be dismissed. 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. The petition is denied.