Student Visa, F-1 Converting to H-1B After Cap Lottery

CASE STUDIES

The Solution

The real solution here is not to be intimidated. We know the law well and could properly rebut with proper legal analysis.

With respect to the first RFE, we knew that the law as provided by the USCIS officer was not complete. Other immigration attorneys lacking experience may not have known an exception exists, and this exception is: students enrolled in graduate studies requiring immediate participation in curricular practical training (CPT) are eligible for post-completion academic training. This exception applied to our client.

After the first RFE response was successful, our client received a second and rare RFE arguing that the student was not in compliance with full-time course of study. We worked with the student and school officials to provide documentation that the Beneficiary benefited from hybrid courses and residency classes as opposed to online courses. In part, we proved our argument by showing the Beneficiary had to participate in three full days of in-class instruction under the supervision of a professor or course instructor. We met the legal standard and were able to show that the student’s status had been maintained.

With regard to the HB1 aspect of this case, we demonstrated that the CPT had been directly related to student’s major area of study. We further explained how the Beneficiary’s then-current MBA program provided specialized knowledge that allowed him to improve his ability to develop and test the systems used for his future employer’s large scale pharmaceutical manufacturing operation.