remanded H-1B Case: Hvac Manufacturing

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
In Re: 12774090 
Appeal of Vermont Service Center Decision 
Form 1-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker (H-lB) 
Non-Precedent Decision of the 
Administrative Appeals Office 
Date : JAN. 14, 2021 
The Petitioner, a manufacturer of residential and commercial air conditioning, seeks to temporarily 
employ the Beneficiary as a "commercial sales manager" under the H-lB nonimmigrant classification 
for specialty occupations. Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act) section 10l(a)(l5)(H)(i)(b), 8 
U.S.C. § l 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b). The H-lB program allows a U.S. employer to temporarily employ a 
qualified foreign worker in a position that requires both (a) the theoretical and practical application of 
a body of highly specialized knowledge and (b) the attainment of a bachelor's or higher degree in the 
specific specialty (or its equivalent) as a minimum prerequisite for entry into the position. 
The Director of the Vermont Service Center denied the petition, concluding that the Petitioner did not 
establish that the proffered position qualifies as a specialty occupation. On appeal, the Petitioner 
asserts the Director erred. The Petitioner bears the burden of proof to demonstrate eligibility by a 
preponderance of the evidence. 1 We review the questions in this matter de novo.2 Upon de nova 
review, we will remand the petition. 
The record presents inconsistencies regarding the requirements for the proffered position. The 
Petitioner designated the proffered position as "Sales Manager," corresponding to standard occupation 
classification (SOC) code 11-2022, at a Level II wage on the labor condition application (LCA). 
However, the Petitioner's claims concerning the minimum knowledge, education, and experience 
required for the position appear to be inconsistent with the Level II wage. 3 Without further 
clarification regarding the actual requirements for the position, we cannot determine whether the 
proffered position is a specialty occupation under sections 10 l(a)(l 5)(H)(i)(b ), 2 l 4(i)(l) of the Act; 
8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(i)(A)(l), 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(ii) and (iii)(A); or whether the Petitioner 
complied with requirements under section 212(n)(l) of the Act. We therefore are withdrawing the 
1 Section 291 of the Act; Matter ofChawathe , 25 I&N Dec. 369,375 (AAO 2010). 
2 See Matter of Christo 's Inc., 26 I&N Dec. 537, 537 n.2 (AAO 2015). 
3 While the Department of Labor (DOL) certifies the LCA, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) determines 
whether the LCA's attestations and content corresponds with and supports the H-lB petition. See 20 C.F.R. § 655.705(b) 
("DHS determines whether the petition is supported by an LCA which corresponds with the petition . . .. "). See also 
Matter of Simeio Solutions , 26 I&N Dec. 542,546 n.6 (AAO 2015). When comparing the SOC code or the wage level 
indicated on the LCA to the claims associated with the petition, USCIS does not purport to supplant DOL 's responsibility 
with respect to wage determinations . There may be some overlap in considerations , but USCIS ' responsibility at its stage 
of adjudication is to ensure that the content of the DOL-certified LCA "corresponds with" the content of the H-lB petition . 
Director's decision and remanding the matter for further review of the record. Specifically, the 
Director should determine whether the record consistently demonstrates the requirements for the 
position and the wage level on the LCA corresponds to and supports this H-lB petition. 
The Petitioner states, that it "requires the Commercial Sales Manager to have a Bachelor's degree in 
Engineering, Business Administration or Marketing or its equivalent" because its "Variable 
Refrigerant Technology (VRV) equipment and other HVAC products ... [are] highly complex and 
[require] that the Commercial Sales Manager has a technical background to be able to effectively sell 
the products." However, the Petitioner does not adequately explain how the necessary technical 
HV AC and engineering knowledge could be obtained by an individual with a degree in business 
administration or marketing. 
Similarly, the Petitioner states that job candidates must possess "cutting edge" business administration 
and marketing skills. However, it is unclear how it expects an individual with an engineering degree 
to gain such skills. Since the educational and professional background required for the proffered 
position are not adequately established, we are not able to determine whether the position requires 
potential candidates to possess bachelor's degrees or higher in multiple technical and business fields, 
significant additional work experience, or both. 
Such an additional educational or experience requirement is further supported by the Petitioner's 
statements in the detailed job duty table it submitted. In that table, the Petitioner states that "12+ 
years' experience in HVAC industry, MBA and engineering degrees are essential for laying out and 
implementing plans to achieve budget and tackle various technical and commercial issues" and "12+ 
years of experience in HV AC field and engineering and MBA degree are essential in discussions and 
presentations with clients, Engineers and Architects who build the new facility and for which [the 
Petitioner] furbish[es] the HVAC setup." We note that the Petitioner included these statements under 
the heading, "Educational or coursework requirements for these duties - what specific knowledge 
obtained from a Bachelor's degree in engineering, business administration or marketing enables one 
to perform these duties? What knowledge did the beneficiary gain during his MBA and Bachelor's 
degree in Mechanical Engineering program?" Without further information, we are unable to 
determine what information in the corresponding column relates to the requirements for the position 
or the Beneficiary's qualifications. 4 
As noted above, the Petitioner classified the proffered position at a Level II wage. The "Prevailing 
Wage Determination Policy Guidance" issued by the DOL provides a description of the wage levels 
and a five-step process for determining the correct level. 5 In summary, a prevailing wage 
determination starts with an entry level wage and progresses to a higher wage level after considering 
the experience, education, special skills, and supervisory requirements of the petitioner's job 
opportunity. After the first step of confirming that the proffered position corresponds to the SOC code 
as described by DOL's Occupational Information Network (O*NET), the next four steps require 
comparison of the petitioner's unique requirements to the generic duties generally required for the 
4 The test to establish a position as a specialty occupation is not the education or experience of a proposed beneficiary, but 
whether the position itself requires at least a bachelor's degree in a specific specialty, or its equivalent. 
5 See Emp't & Training Admin., Prevailing Wage Determination Policy Guidance, Nonagric. Immigration Programs (rev. 
Nov. 2009) (DOL guidance), available at http://flcdatacenter.com/download/NPWHC _Guidance_ Revised_ 11 _ 2009 .pdf 
(providing guidance for selecting the correct SOC code and prevailing wage). 
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occupation in O*NET. 
Under step two of this process, which compares the experience described by the O*NET Job Zone to 
the requirements for the proffered position, "Sales Managers" is classified in Job Zone 4 with a 
Specialized Vocational Preparation (SVP) rating of "7.0 < 8.0."6 This SVP rating means that the 
occupation requires "over 2 years up to and including 4 years" of specific vocational training. Here, 
requiring 12 years or more of vocational experience along with an MBA would be greater than the 
experience normally required per the SVP rating, necessitating a three step increase in the wage level. 
Likewise, under step three, if the level of education required for the position is greater than what is 
generally required for the O*NET occupation, than the wage level may also need to be raised by at 
least one level. As such, considering what appear to be additional experience and educational 
requirements, a wage level increase to Level IV may have been merited. 7 
The Petitioner indicated it would pay the Beneficiary $106,584.96 per year, which is commensurate 
with the $106,517 yearly prevailing Level II wage certified in the LCA. However, as discussed above, 
it appears as though a level IV wage rate may be more appropriate to compensate the Beneficiary 
depending on the position's actual requirements. If it is determined that such a wage level is required, 
it would result in a prevailing wage of $179,421 and a significant pay discrepancy. 8 
In light of the above, the Director should determine (1) the actual requirements for the position; (2) 
the submitted LCA corresponds to and supports the H-lB petition; and (3) the petition is otherwise 
approvable. 
As the Petitioner was not previously accorded the opportunity to address the above, we will remand 
the record for further review of these issues. The Director may request any additional evidence 
considered pertinent to the new determination. We express no opinion regarding the ultimate 
resolution of this case on remand. 
ORDER: The decision of the Director is withdrawn. The matter is remanded for further 
proceedings consistent with the foregoing opinion and for the entry of a new decision. 
6 Summa,y Report for: I 1-2022.00 Sales Managers, O*NET OnLine Archives, 
https://www.onetonline.org/ Archive_ ONET-SOC _ 201 O _Taxonomy_ 09 _ 2020/link/summary/11-2022.00 (last visited Jan 
13, 2020) (O*NET Sales Managers Summary Repmt). 
7 See DOL guidance. 
8 "Sales Manager" Level IV prevailing wage of $179,421 is for the same time and place as the wage certified on the LCA. 
To determine the appropriate prevailing wage, see the appropriate location and timeframe on the Online Wage Libr{lfy -
FLC Wage Search Wizard, Foreign Labor Certification Data Center https://flcdatacenter.com/OESWizardStart.aspx. 
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