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Statement of Specialty Occupation

On Department Letterhead:​

  
[Date]
H-1B Temporary Worker Petition for [Applicant’s full name]

To the USCIS Adjudicating Officer:

This petition is for a (job title) position, which qualifies as a specialty occupation. It requires the theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge to fully perform the occupation and requires completion of a specific course of education culminating in a baccalaureate or higher degree in a specific occupational specialty.

In this case, the minimum degree required is a XXX degree (e.g. Ph.D., Master's, Bachelor's, etc.) in (List Two Field of Study, one of which must be the field listed on applicant's diploma/transcripts) or a related field.  This position requires (# ) years of related experience.

For Postdoctoral Fellow Research Associate and Faculty positions only: Include a Brief Job Description here (this document will serve as the main job description we send to USCIS, so be sure to adequately explain the job requirements).

Sincerely,

[Name, Title of Appropriate Departmental Official]
[Department name]
[Name of School or College]

 

 

For purposes of section 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b), 101(a)(15)(E)(iii), and paragraph (2), the term "specialty occupation" means 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. The statutory definition requires not only at least a bachelor's degree, but a bachelor's degree "in the specific specialty." USCIS now seeks a near exact match between job offer title, duties, and candidate’s degree, only accepting alternative degrees ratified by the Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook. USCIS has been denying H-1B Petitions where the industry and employers accept a wide range of ostensibly “disparate” degrees as prerequisites for entry into the position – on the basis that a position cannot be considered a “specialty occupation” where the […]