So submitted your H-1B petition the first week of April, you made it through the lottery, the USCIS has reviewed your petition and sent an RFE. What do you do now?
First off, don’t panic! This means your visa hasn’t been denied and you get a second chance to build a strong case for its approval.
In that past few years, the USCIS has been issuing more and more RFE’s in response to H-1B petitions. These are “requests for evidence” because they feel they don’t have enough information to approve your petition based on what you submitted.
If you earned your bachelor’s or master’s degree from outside of the United States and you didn’t submit a detailed credential evaluation with your petition, you’re probably staring down an RFE. If your degree is in a related field to your specialty occupation but not in the exact field of your job and you didn’t submit a detailed credential evaluation with your petition, you’re probably staring down an RFE. Maybe you submitted an evaluation but the agency that evaluated your education was questionable. These are all situations that trigger and RFE response.
The first thing you need to do when you receive and RFE is to go over it with your employer and figure out exactly what they are asking you to supply. Then, supply it. Don’t hesitate, submit a detailed credential evaluation and prove that you are qualified for your job and for your H-1B visa.
If you’ve received an RFE on your H-1B petition for an education situation, visit us online at cciFree.com or call anytime at 1.800.771.4723 for a free consultation.