TN Visa Case Info.

Background:

The applicant previously held a TN under the Management Consultant category. She sought to renew this TN at the Blaine POE in order to continue working in her position. The inspecting officer denied the application because he did not think the duties were consistent with those of a Management Consultant.

The applicant returned to a different POE with an updated letter that attempted to explain her position’s eligibility for a TN under the Management Consultant category. The inspecting officer did not adjudicate the application, but instead instructed the applicant to return to the POE during regular business hours.

We reviewed the application and agreed that the position did not fall under the Management Consultant TN category. However, we believed it fell under the Computer Systems Analyst TN category. To overcome the prior denial, we needed to show why the position was more consistent with the Computer Systems Analyst TN category, and how the applicant qualified for this category despite her lack of a computer related degree. (She possessed a Bachelor’s degree in Education.)

TN Category:

Computer Systems Analyst

Job title / duties:

The job offered was titled Project Manager – Testing. The position involved the replacement of a student and administrative system with Oracle’s full-suite PeopleSoft 9.2 solution.

Anytime a position’s job title does not exactly match the TN category, immigration officers are likely to contest eligibility. To establish eligibility under the Computer Systems Analyst category, our application included substantial evidence from the Occupational Outlook Handbook and other sources to show that the position’s job title and duties were consistent with the Computer Systems Analyst occupation.

Education:

The applicant possessed a Bachelor’s degree in Education. As this degree was not exactly in the Computer Systems Analyst field, we needed to supplement the application to establish how the applicant qualified as a professional Computer Systems Analyst. We documented her substantial experience in working on the implementation of PeopleSoft systems, and included her related certification courses. We then supported our argument by including research from the Occupational Outlook Handbook and other sources to confirm that the applicant’s credentials were appropriate for a Computer Systems Analyst position.

Filing Process:

TN visa status application @ USCBP - Buffalo, NY POE

Processing time:

Approved same day filed

Approval period:

3 years