Matter of General Atomic Company, Interim Decision Number 2827

• Citation: 17 I&N Dec. 532
• Decision Date: 21 August 1980
• Docket Number: Interim Decision Number 2827,SND-N-1730
• Parties: MATTER OF GENERAL ATOMIC COMPANY In Visa Petition Proceedings
• Court: U.S. DOJ Board of Immigration Appeals

17 I&N Dec. 532

MATTER OF GENERAL ATOMIC COMPANY

In Visa Petition Proceedings

Interim Decision Number 2827

SND-N-1730

Board of Immigration Appeals.

Decided by Commissioner August 21, 1980

(1) A person who is qualified as a member of the professions qualifies as a person "of distinguished merit and ability" as that term is used in section 101(a)(15)(H)(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(H)(i).

(2) Where a beneficiary is a member of the profession of civil engineering, the services are to be performed for a temporary period of time, and the job offered requires the services of a professional engineer, whether or not the beneficiary is preeminent or renown in engineering is not in question. See Matter of Essex Cryogenics Industries, Inc., 14 I & N. Dec. 196 (D.A.C.1972).

ON BEHALF OF PETITIONER: Ronna Lee Beck, Esquire, Rogovin, Stern & Hugh, 1730 Rhode Island Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036.

The instant petition is on certification at my direction for review of the Regional Commissioner's decision. The District Director denied the petition and certified his decision to the Regional Commissioner. The Regional Commissioner, in agreement with the decision of the District Director, concluded that the attainment of an undergraduate degree in and of itself does not automatically establish an alien to be a person of distinguished merit and ability. The Regional Commissioner concluded further that Matter of Essex Cryogenics, Industries, Inc., 14 I & N. Dec. 196 (D.A.C.1972), found that an alien professional is qualified as an "H-1" only if the alien is distinguished or preeminent in his profession.

The petitioner is offering the beneficiary employment as a civil engineer specifically involved in stress analysis. The beneficiary has obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from a United States university and has completed 12 months of practical training in the employ of the petitioner. During her training with the petitioner the beneficiary is stated to have acquired specialized knowledge uncommon to her profession. This knowledge is said to be possessed by only twenty-five to thirty people within the United States. The Regional Commissioner questioned her acquisition of this knowledge as it is not offered in United States' learning institutions and allegedly was so quickly acquired through her on-the-job experience.

Matter of Essex Cryogenics Industries, Inc., 14 I & N. Dec. 196 (D.A.C.1972), states:

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