Date of Decision: June 29, 2017
Service Center: Nebraska Service Center
Form Type: Form I-140
Case Type: EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW)
Field of Expertise: Software Development and Education
Petitioner Information
Profession: Senior Programmer Analyst
Field: Computer Applications
Nationality: Not specified
Summary of Decision
Initial Decision: Denied
Appeal Outcome: Denied
Evidentiary Criteria Analysis
Criteria Met:
None specified: The petitioner did not meet the evidentiary criteria required to establish the beneficiary’s qualifications.
Criteria Not Met:
Minimum Education Required: The petitioner failed to demonstrate that the beneficiary possessed the required U.S. master’s degree or its foreign equivalent in computer science or engineering by the priority date.
Ability to Pay Proffered Wage: The petitioner did not establish its ability to pay the proffered wage from the priority date onward.
Key Points from the Decision
Proposed Endeavor:
The petitioner proposed to employ the beneficiary as a senior programmer analyst in their software development and education business.
Substantial Merit and National Importance:
The decision did not detail findings regarding the substantial merit and national importance of the proposed endeavor. The focus was primarily on the beneficiary’s qualifications and the petitioner’s ability to pay the proffered wage.
Key Quote: “The Petitioner has not established that the Beneficiary meets the requirements for EB-2 classification.”
Supporting Evidence:
The petitioner provided the beneficiary’s diploma, academic transcripts, and a credential evaluation from the evaluator.
Key Quote: “The Beneficiary’s master’s degree in computer applications from India is not the foreign equivalent of a master’s degree in computer science or engineering.”
Inconsistencies in Proposed Endeavor:
The credential evaluations submitted by the petitioner were not consistent with the findings from EDGE, which is considered a reliable source by USCIS for evaluating foreign degrees.
Supporting Documentation
Letters of Intent: Not applicable
Business Plan: Not applicable
Advisory Letter: Not applicable
Any Other Supporting Documentation:
The petitioner submitted a chart listing beneficiaries for whom it filed Forms I-140, but this did not accurately reflect the number of beneficiaries or the proffered wages required.
Conclusion
Final Determination: The appeal was dismissed.
Reasoning: The petitioner did not establish that the beneficiary had the required master’s degree or its foreign equivalent by the priority date, as the beneficiary’s master’s degree in computer applications was deemed equivalent to a U.S. bachelor’s degree according to EDGE. Additionally, the petitioner failed to demonstrate its ability to pay the proffered wage to the beneficiary and other beneficiaries for whom it filed Form I-140 petitions.
