sustained H-1B Case: Software Development

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
Non-Precedent Decision of the
Administrative Appeals Office 
Date: JUNE 14, 2024 In Re: 31162898 
Appeal of California Service Center Decision 
Form 1-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker (H-lB) 
The Petitioner, a healthcare analytics company, seeks to temporarily employ the Beneficiary under the 
H-lB nonimmigrant classification for specialty occupations. See Immigration and Nationality Act 
(the Act) section 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b), 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(l5)(H)(i)(b) . The H-lB program allows a 
U.S. employer to temporarily employ a qualified nonimrnigrant 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 California Service Center denied the petition, concluding that the record did not 
establish that the Beneficiary is qualified to perform services in the specialty occupation under any of 
the regulatory criteria at 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(C). The matter is now before us on appeal pursuant 
to 8 C.F.R. § 103.3. 
The Petitioner bears the burden of proof to demonstrate eligibility by a preponderance of the evidence. 
Matter ofChawathe, 25 I&N Dec. 369, 375-76 (AAO 2010). We review the questions in this matter 
de novo. Matter of Christo 's, Inc., 26 l&N Dec. 537, 537 n.2 (AAO 2015). Upon de novo review, 
we will sustain the appeal. 
I. LAW 
Section 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b) of the Act defines an H-lB nonimmigrant as a foreign national "who is 
corning temporarily to the United States to perform services ... in a specialty occupation described in 
section 214(i)(l) . ... " Section 214(i)(l) of the Act defines the term "specialty occupation" as an 
occupation that requires the "theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized 
knowledge, and 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." Long standing legal standards 
require that the Director first determine whether the proffered position qualifies for classification as a 
specialty occupation and then move to determine whether the beneficiary was qualified for the position 
at the time the nonirnmigrant petition was filed. Cf Matter ofMichael Hertz Assocs. , 19 I&N Dec. 
588, 560 (Comm'r 1988) . 
The regulations at 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(C) require that a beneficiary meet one of four criteria to 
qualify to perform services in a specialty occupation: 
(1) Hold a United States bachelor's degree or higher required by the specialty 
occupation from an accredited college or university; 
(2) Hold a foreign degree determined to be equivalent to a United States bachelor's 
degree or higher required by the specialty occupation from an accredited college 
or university; 
(3) Hold an unrestricted State license, registration, or certification which authorizes 
him or her to fully practice the specialty occupation and be immediately engaged 
in that specialty in the state of intended employment; or 
(4) Have education, specialized training, and/ or progressively responsible 
experience that is equivalent to completion of a United States bachelor's degree 
or higher in the specialty occupation, and have recognition of expertise in the 
specialty through progressively responsible positions directly related to the 
specialty. 
II. ANALYSIS 
The Petitioner seeks to employ the Beneficiary in the pos1t10n of "business analyst software 
development." On the labor condition application (LCA) submitted in support of the petition, the 
Petitioner classified the proffered position to be in the occupational category of "Software Developers" 
with Standard Occupational Classificational (SOC) code 15-1252.00. The Petitioner states that the 
educational requirement for the position is a bachelor's degree in computer science, information 
technology, or a related field. This is supported by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational 
Outlook Handbook (Handbook) profile for the occupation "Software Developers, Quality Assurance 
Analysts, and Testers," which states that the occupation typically requires a bachelor's degree in 
"computer and information technology or a related field such as engineering or mathematics." See 
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Dep't of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Software 
Developers, Quality Assurance Analysts, and Testers (April 17, 2024), 
https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm. The 
Director's decision does not state a finding as to whether the proffered position here is a specialty 
occupation, but upon de novo review we conclude that it is. 
We tum next to the Beneficiary's qualification for the specialty occupation, which was the basis for 
the Director's denial. The Beneficiary possesses a bachelor of technology degree in mechanical 
engineering from India, 
and a master of science degree in mechanical engineering from the 
The record also contains an evaluation of the Beneficiary's education and work experience which 
concludes that the Beneficiary's bachelor of technology degree is comparable to a U.S. bachelor of 
science degree in mechanical engineering. Further, according to the American Association of 
Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) Electronic Database for Global Education 
2 
(EDGE), 1 a bachelor of technology degree represents attainment of a level of education comparable 
to a bachelor's degree in the United States. We therefore conclude that the Beneficiary's bachelor of 
technology degree is equivalent to a U.S. bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering. 2 
The Director concluded that the Beneficiary does not hold a U.S. bachelor's degree or higher in a field 
required for the specialty occupation, or a foreign equivalent degree, or an unrestricted state license to 
practice the specialty occupation. The Director therefore analyzed whether the Petitioner established 
that the Beneficiary meets the regulatory criterion at 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(C)(4) by possessing 
the education, specialized training and/or progressively responsible experience that is equivalent to 
completion of the required U.S. degree and receiving recognition of their expertise in the specialty 
through progressively responsible positions directly related to the specialty. The Director concluded 
that the evidence in the record was insufficient to establish that the Beneficiary qualifies under this 
criterion, and therefore that the Beneficiary does not qualify to perform services in the specialty 
occupation. On appeal, the Petitioner asserts that the Director's decision was in error. 
Upon de novo review, we conclude that the record establishes that the Beneficiary is qualified to 
perform services in the specialty occupation. The record demonstrates that the Petitioner will accept, 
in addition to a degree in computer science or information technology, a degree in a related field. 
Based upon the evidence in the record regarding the proffered position, including the nature of the 
Petitioner's business and its description of the job duties, and the Beneficiary's specific educational 
credentials, including the Beneficiary's bachelor of technology and master of science diplomas and 
transcripts, both in mechanical engineering, the record establishes that mechanical engineering is one 
such related field. Additionally, the Handbook states that a degree in engineering is a related field. 
Although the Director's analysis focused on the Beneficiary's qualifications under the criterion at 
8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(C)(4), we conclude that the Beneficiary's degrees in mechanical 
engineering demonstrate that the Beneficiary holds both a United States bachelor's degree or higher 
required by the specialty occupation and a foreign degree that is equivalent to a U.S. bachelor's degree 
required by the specialty occupation. 
The record therefore establishes that the Beneficiary is qualified to perform the duties of this specialty 
occupation under 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(C)(l) and 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(C)(2). Moreover, 
the evidence of record establishes that the proffered position requires the theoretical and practical 
application of a body of highly specialized knowledge, and the attainment of a bachelor's degree or 
higher in the specific specialty or its equivalent. It also establishes that a bachelor's degree or higher 
or its equivalent is normally the minimum requirement for entry into the particular position, and it 
therefore satisfies 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(l). 
1 We consider EDGE to be a reliable source of information about foreign credential equivalencies. See Confluence Intern., 
Inc. v. Holder, Civil No. 08-2665 (DSD-JJG), 2009 WL 825793 (D. Minn. Mar. 27, 2009); Tisco Group, Inc. v. Napolitano, 
No. 09-cv-10072. 2010 WL 3464314 (E.D. Mich. Aug. 30, 2010); Sunshine Rehab Services, Inc. No. 09-13605. 2010 WL 
3325442 (E.D. Mich. Aug. 20, 2010). See also Viraj, LLC v. Holder, No. 2: 12-CV-00127-RWS, 2013 WL 1943431 (N.D. 
Ga. May 18, 2013). 
2 The evaluation was submitted in an attempt to establish the Beneficiary's qualification to perform the specialty occupation 
under 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(C)(4) and therefore discusses the combination of the Beneficiary's education and work 
experience as equating to a bachelor's degree in a separate field. Because, as we discuss below, we conclude that the 
Beneficiary's degree in mechanical engineering represents a degree that is related to the field required by the specialty 
occupation, we do not make any findings as to whether the evaluation establishes the Beneficiary's degree equivalency 
based upon a combination of education, specialized training, and/or progressively responsible work experience. 
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III. CONCLUSION 
The evidence of record establishes that the proffered position requires both the theoretical and practical 
application of a body of highly specialized knowledge and the attainment of a bachelor's degree or 
higher in the specific specialty or its equivalent. Moreover, the record establishes that the Beneficiary 
was qualified for the occupation at the time the petition was filed. 
ORDER: The appeal is sustained. 
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