dismissed H-1B Case: Finance

identifying data deleted to 
prevent clearly unwamnted 
invasion of penollpl privacy 
PUBLIC COPY - b-,, k ,.. - 
U.S. Department of Homeland Security 
20 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Rm. A3042 
Washington, DC 20529 
U. S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
FILE: EAC 04 205 52986 Office: VERMONT SERVICE CENTER Date: % JUN 0 6 2ofi 
PETITION: Petition for a Nonirnmigrant Worker Pursuant to Section lOl(a)(lS)(H)(i)(b) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. 5 1 lOl(a)(lS)(H)(i)(b) 
ON BEHALF OF PETITIONER: 
INSTRUCTIONS: 
This is the decision of the Administrative Appeals Office in your case. All materials have been returned 
to the office that originally decided your case. Any further inquiry must be made to that office. 
Robert P. Wiernann, Chief 
Administrative Appeals Office 
EAC 04 205 52986 
Page 2 
DISCUSSION: The service center director denied the nonimmigrant visa petition. The matter is now on 
appeal before the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO). The appeal will be dismissed. The petition will be 
denied. 
The petitioner is an insurance company. It seeks to employ the beneficiary as a financial manager and to 
classify her 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. $ 1 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b). 
The director denied the petition on the ground that the record failed to establish that the proffered position 
qualifies as a specialty occupation. 
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. 
As provided in 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; 
(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. 
$ 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 evidence (RFE); (3) the petitioner's response to the RFE; (4) the director's decision; 
and (5) Form I-290B, an appeal brief, and supporting materials. The AAO reviewed the record in its 
entirety before issuing its decision. 
EAC 04 205 52986 
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The petitioner describes itself as a property and casualty insurance agency providing a variety of 
insurance products to businesses, individuals and other insurance companies. The petitioner states that its 
business was established in 1991, has eight employees and gross annual income of $722,230, and that it 
proposes to employ the beneficiary as a financial manager for three years. The duties of the proffered 
position, and the percentage of time required by each duty, were listed as follows in the petitioner's initial 
letter and in its response to the RFE: 
10% Develop strategies and implement the long-term goals of the organization. 
20% Prepare financial reports that summarize and forecast the organization's financial 
position. 
10% Oversee the investment of funds and manage associated risks. 
5% Supervise cash management activities. 
10% Execute capital-raising strategies to support an expansion, deal with mergers and 
acquisitions. 
25% Establish credit-rating criteria, determine credit ceilings, monitor the collections of past- 
due accounts. 
20% Monitor and control the flow of cash receipts and disbursements to meet the business and 
investment needs of the firm. 
According to the petitioner, the minimum educational requirement for the position is a bachelor's degree 
in economics or a related discipline. The beneficiary qualifies for the job, the petitioner declares, by 
virtue of her diploma, awarded on July 1, 1991, upon completion of a four-year course of study at the 
Novosibirsk Institute of Soviet Cooperational Trade. According to the report of an academic credentials 
evaluation service in New York City, the beneficiary's education is equivalent to a bachelor of arts degree 
in economics from an accredited U.S. college or university. 
In her decision the director determined that the record failed to show that the duties of the proffered 
position, as described by the petitioner, normally require a baccalaureate degree to perform. The 
documentation of record did not establish that a degree requirement is common to the petitioner's 
industry in parallel positions among similar organizations, the director stated, or that the duties of the 
position involve a degree of specialization and complexity that is normally associated with a bachelor's 
degree. The director concluded that the proffered position does not qualify as a specialty occupation 
under any of the criteria enumerated at 8 C.F.R. $214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A). 
On appeal counsel reformulates the duties of the proffered position, and the percentage of time required 
by each duty, as follows: 
25% Direct the preparation of financial reports that summarize and forecast the organization's 
financial position. 
10% Prepare special reports required by regulatory authorities. 
15% Oversee the investment of funds and manage associated risks. 
15% Execute capital-raising strategies to support a firm's expansion. 
20% Oversee programs to minimize risks and losses that might arise from financial 
transactions and business operations undertaken by the institution. 
15% Manage the organization's insurance budget. 
EAC 04 205 52986 
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According to counsel, the foregoing duties are so complex that they can only be performed by an 
individual with a specialized degree in business administration, marketing, or the like. Counsel cites 
information in the Department of Labor (D0L)'s Occupational Outlook Handbook (Handbook) stating 
that a bachelor's degree in finance, accounting, economics, or business administration is the minimum 
academic requirement for financial managers. Counsel submits a list of the petitioner's employees and 
their academic degrees, a copy of the petitioner's internet job posting for the proffered position, and a 
letter from another insurance company about its employment of financial managers and their academic 
qualifications. 
In determining whether a position meets the statutory and regulatory criteria of a specialty occupation, 
CIS routinely consults the DOL Handbook as an authoritative source of information about the duties and 
educational requirements of particular occupations. Factors typically considered are whether the 
Handbook indicates a degree is required by the industry; 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 HiraBlaker Corp. v. Suva, 
764 F.Supp. 1095, 1102 (S.D.N.Y. 1989)). CIS also analyzes the specific duties and complexity of the 
position at issue, with the Handbook's occupational descriptions as a reference, as well as the petitioner's 
past hiring practices for the position. See Shanti, Znc. v. Reno, id., at 1165-66. 
The duties of a financial manager are described in the Handbook, 2006-07 edition, as follows: 
The duties of financial managers vary with their specific titles, which include controller, 
treasurer or finance officer, credit manager, cash manager, and risk and insurance 
manager. Controllers direct the preparation of financial reports that summarize and 
forecast the organization's financial position, such as income statements, balance sheets, 
and analyses of future earnings or expenses. Controllers also are in charge of preparing 
special reports required by regulatory authorities. Often, controllers oversee the 
accounting, audit, and budget departments. Treasurers and finance oficers direct the 
organization's financial goals, objectives, and budgets. They oversee the investment of 
funds, manage associated risks, supervise cash management activities, execute capital- 
raising strategies to support a firm's expansion, and deal with mergers and acquisitions. 
Credit managers oversee the firm's issuance of credit, establishing credit-rating criteria, 
determining credit ceilings, and monitoring the collections of pastdue accounts. 
Managers specializing in international finance develop financial and accounting systems 
for the banking transactions of multinational organizations. 
Cash managers monitor and control the flow of cash receipts and disbursements to meet 
the business and investment needs of the firm. For example, cash flow projections are 
needed to determine whether loans must be obtained to meet cash requirements or 
whether surplus cash should be invested in interest-bearing. instruments. Risk and 
insurance managers oversee programs to minimize risks and losses that might arise from 
financial transactions and business operations undertaken by the institution. They also 
manage the organization's insurance budget. 
EAC 04 205 52986 
Page 5 
In addition to carrying out the preceding general duties, all financial managers perform 
tasks unique to their organization or industry . . . . 
Financial managers play an increasingly important role in mergers and consolidations and 
in global expansion and related financing . . . . 
The role of the financial manager, particularly in business, is changing in response to 
technological advances . . . . Financial managers now perform more data analysis and use 
it to offer senior managers ideas on how to maximize profits. They often work on teams, 
acting as business advisors to top management. Financial managers need to keep abreast 
of the latest computer technology in order to increase the efficiency of their firm's 
financial operations. 
The Handbook, id., indicates that a bachelor's degree in finance, accounting, economics, or business 
administration is the normal minimum requirement for entry into a financial manager position. The AAO 
determines that a financial manager meets the first alternative criterion of a specialty occupation at 
8 C.F.R. 5 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(l). 
The evidence of record, however, does not demonstrate that the proffered position is actually that of a 
financial manager. The petitioner describes the duties of the position in broad, general terms using 
language from the DOL Handbook. The petitioner must do more than recite the duties of an occupational 
category. It must provide substantive details about the specific tasks the beneficiary will perform in 
relation to the petitioner's business. The director requested additional details about the duties of the 
position in the RFE - asking for "specifics . . . not generalities" - but the petitioner's response was to list 
additional duties from the Handbook. Without specific information about the tasks the beneficiary will 
perform in the context of the petitioner's business, the AAO is not persuaded that the beneficiary will be 
performing the duties of a financial manager, or that the position requires the employee to have a 
baccalaureate or higher degree in a specific specialty. 
In determining the nature of a particular position, and whether it qualifies as a specialty occupation, the 
duties that will actually be performed are crucial, not the title of the position. The petitioner must show 
that the performance demands of the position require a specialty degree. The critical issue is not the 
employer's self-imposed standard, 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 a minimum for entry into the occupation. C' Defensor v. Meissner, 
201 F.3d 384, 387-88 (5th Cir. 2000). In the instant case, the record does not establish that the 
beneficiary will be performing the duties of a financial manager in the proffered position. The position 
does not meet the first alternative criterion of a specialty occupation at 8 C.F.R. 5 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(l), 
therefore, because the evidence of record does not demonstrate that a baccalaureate or higher degree in a 
specific specialty is the normal minimum requirement for entry into the position. 
As for the second alternative criterion of a specialty occupation, at 8 C.F.R. 5 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(2), 
counsel has submitted on appeal a letter from the president of a self-described "consulting company 
providing tailored risk management services, general insurance policies," who declares that the company 
routinely employs financial managers and that all former and current employees in that position have at 
least a bachelor's degree in economics or a related discipline. Although the writer asserts that his 
EAC 04 205 52986 
Page 6 
company is comparable in size and scale of operations to the petitioner, there is no corroborating evidence 
in the record. Nor is the letter supplemented by any evidence identifying specific financial managers in 
the company's employ and documenting their specialty degrees. Simply going on record without 
supporting documentation does not satisfy the petitioner's burden of proof. See Matter of SofJici, 22 I&N 
Dec. 158, 165 (Comm. 1998) (citing Matter of Treasure Craft of California, 14 I&N Dec. 190 (Reg. 
Comm. 1972)). Thus, the letter fails to establish that a specialty degree requirement is common to the 
petitioner's industry in parallel positions among similar organizations, as required for the proffered 
position to qualify as a specialty occupation under the first prong of 8 C.F.R. 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(2). 
Nor does the record demonstrate that the proffered position is so complex or unique that a degree in a 
specific specialty is required to perform the job, as required for it to qualify as a specialty occupation 
under the second prong of 8 C.F.R. 214.2 (h)(4)(iii)(A)(2). 
With regard to the third alternative criterion of a specialty occupation, at 8 C.F.R. 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(3), 
the petitioner has submitted a list of its employees on appeal, which includes an individual in the position 
of financial manager who, according to the petitioner, performs the same duties as the proffered position 
and has a bachelor's degree in business administration. No corroborating documentation has been 
submitted, such as employee records or pay statements, showing that the individual is actually employed 
by the petitioner, and in what capacity. Nor has any evidence been submitted of the individual's degree. 
Going on record without supporting documentation does not satisfy the petitioner's burden of proof. See 
Matter of SofJici, id. On appeal the petitioner has also submitted an internet advertisement for the 
proffered position, which appears to predate the filing of the instant petition, stating that "[qlualified 
candidates will possess a bachelor's degree in economics and/or relevant industry experience." 
[Emphasis added.] Thus, the petitioner's own job posting indicates that industry experience could 
substitute for a specialty degree. Based on the evidence of record, the AAO determines that the petitioner 
has not demonstrated that it normally requires a baccalaureate degree in a specific specialty or its 
equivalent for the proffered position, as required for the position to qualify as a specialty occupation 
under 8 C.F.R. 214.2 (h)(4)(iii)(A)(3). 
Finally, the evidence of record fails to show that the duties of the proffered position are so specialized and 
complex that baccalaureate or higher level knowledge in a specific specialty is required to perform them, 
as required for the position to meet the fourth alternative criterion of a specialty occupation at 8 C.F.R. 
214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(4). The petitioner has not provided a description of the specific tasks to be 
performed by the beneficiary in relation to the petitioner's business. Accordingly, the petitioner cannot 
establish that the proffered position qualifies as a specialty occupation based on the specialization and 
complexity of its duties. 
For the reasons discussed above, the record does not establish that the proffered position meets any of the 
criteria enumerated at 8 C.F.R. 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A) to qualify as a specialty occupation. The petitioner 
has not established that the beneficiary will be corning temporarily to the United States to perform 
services in a specialty occupation, as required under section lOl(a)(lS)(H)(i)(b) of the Act, 8 U.S.C. 
§ 1 lol(a>( 15)(H)(i)(b). 
The petitioner bears the burden of proof in these proceedings. See section 291 of the Act, 8 U.S.C. 1361. 
The petitioner has not sustained that burden. Accordingly, the AAO will not disturb the director's decision 
denying the petition. 
EAC 04 205 52986 
Page 7 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. The petition is denied.