Why H-1B Petitions Get RFEs, and How Employers Prevent Them

An H-1B Request for Evidence (RFE) means the USCIS officer could not approve the petition on the record as filed and wants more proof on specific points. Most H-1B RFEs come back to five questions: Is the job a specialty occupation requiring a degree in a directly related field? Is there real work for this worker, including at any client site? Do the wage level and Labor Condition Application match the duties? Does the worker hold the right degree or its equivalent? And has the worker maintained status? Employers prevent most RFEs by answering those questions in the initial petition — detailed duties tied to a specific degree, consistent occupation codes and wage levels, worksite documentation, and a credentials evaluation where needed. When an RFE does arrive, the response must answer every point, in one submission, before a deadline that cannot be extended.

1. Specialty occupation: the most common RFE

USCIS defines a specialty occupation as one requiring the theoretical and practical application of highly specialized knowledge and at least a bachelor’s degree in a directly related specific specialty, or its equivalent. "Directly related" means a logical connection between the degree and the duties. The position must also meet one of four criteria — the degree is normally the minimum for the occupation, it is common in the industry for parallel positions, the employer (or the third-party client) normally requires it, or the duties are so specialized and complex that they need it.

RFEs follow when the job description is generic ("analyze data, support projects"), when the employer accepts any degree, or when the occupation is one where many people work without a specific degree. A requirement of "a bachelor’s in any field" or a general business degree usually invites the question. The fix is a description of what the person actually does, how much of their time each duty takes, and why those duties need a particular field of study.

2. Real work, and third-party worksites

USCIS wants to see a bona fide job: specific work for this worker, in the United States, from the requested start date. This is rarely an issue for an engineer joining a product team at headquarters. It is a frequent issue when the worker will be placed at a client site through a consulting or staffing arrangement. There, USCIS looks at the actual work at the client and, for the degree requirement, the third party’s requirements.

• A letter from the end client describing the project, the worker’s role, and its duration.
• The contract chain — master services agreement and statement of work — showing the project exists through the requested period.
• Who supervises the day-to-day work, and how the petitioner remains the employer.
• An LCA that covers every place the person will actually work.

3. Wage level and LCA consistency

Every H-1B petition is filed with a certified Labor Condition Application stating the occupation (SOC code), the worksite, and the prevailing wage level. Officers compare it to the job description. A Level I (entry-level) wage paired with duties that describe a senior architect, or a senior wage paired with a junior description, prompts questions about what the job really is. An LCA for the wrong metropolitan area is a common, avoidable error.

Consistency matters more than ever because the cap registration now asks for the SOC code, area of employment, and wage level, and selection is weighted by the offered wage level starting with the FY2027 season — Level IV registrations receive four entries, Level I one. Expect USCIS to compare the petition with what the registration claimed, and choose the SOC code and wage level from the real duties before registering, not after selection.

4. The worker’s degree and equivalency

The worker must hold a U.S. bachelor’s or higher degree in the specialty, a foreign degree that is equivalent, or a combination of education, training, and progressively responsible experience equivalent to that degree. RFEs arise when a foreign degree is three years rather than four, when the major does not obviously match the job, or when experience is offered in place of education without strong documentation. A credentials evaluation, and where experience is used, detailed letters from prior employers describing the specialized work, address this before the officer has to ask. Licensed professions also need the state license or proof the person is eligible for one.

5. Maintenance of status

For a change of status, extension, or H-1B transfer, USCIS checks that the worker has kept lawful status. Typical triggers are gaps between OPT ending and the H-1B start, pay stubs showing a lower salary than the prior petition, work for an employer not covered by the prior approval, or I-94 dates that do not match the approval notice. Include recent pay statements and the I-94 record with the petition, and explain any gap before USCIS finds it.

How to structure a strong initial petition

The support letter should read as one consistent account: the same title, duties, worksite, and wage everywhere it appears — registration, LCA, Form I-129, and the letter. Most avoidable RFEs come from documents that were each correct alone but disagree with one another.

What a good RFE response contains

The RFE notice states its deadline, and under 8 CFR 103.2(b)(8)(iv) the response period cannot exceed twelve weeks and additional time may not be granted. All requested materials must go in together, with the RFE notice; a partial response is treated as a request for a decision on the record. The evidence must also show the case was approvable when filed. A strong response:

• Opens with a cover brief that lists each issue the officer raised and the exhibits that answer it.
• Addresses the regulatory standard the officer cited, not just the documents requested.
• Adds independent evidence where useful — job postings for parallel roles, an expert opinion on the degree requirement, an organizational chart.
• Keeps every new fact consistent with the original petition.

On speed: a response can be filed any time before the deadline, and filing early moves the case sooner. But the fastest response that leaves a point unanswered is worse than a complete one filed a week later. USCIS does not publish RFE rates by law firm, and a firm’s experience depends heavily on its mix of cases, so judge counsel by how they analyze your RFE, not by a number.

A note on the $100,000 H-1B payment

A September 19, 2025 presidential proclamation requires a $100,000 payment for certain new H-1B petitions for workers outside the United States who do not hold a valid H-1B visa. Per USCIS guidance, changes of status, extensions, and amendments for workers already in the U.S. were excluded. The requirement’s application has been challenged in federal court with conflicting rulings, so confirm its current status before filing any petition for a worker abroad.

Costs and timeline

Government fees, including the premium processing fee, are listed on the USCIS filing fee page; an RFE response has no separate USCIS fee. Legal fees for an initial petition and for an RFE response should be quoted in writing before work begins. How long a decision takes after a response depends on the service center and whether premium processing was requested; see current processing times.

How Atlas Immigration Law helps

We prepare H-1B petitions to answer the five common questions up front, and when an RFE arrives — on our filing or another firm’s — our H-1B RFE response team maps every issue and evidence request against the deadline on day one. Each matter has a flat fee agreed in writing before work starts, billed at milestones, with a dedicated paralegal, same-business-day responses, and direct access to attorney Jordan Weinberg. HR teams track every petition in the Atlas Vision client portal. From our Dallas office at 1920 McKinney Ave we serve employers in all 50 states, in English and Spanish, across all employer work visas. See also our H-1B guide for employers. A free consultation is available on request.

This guide is part of our work visa services for employers — the service page covers eligibility, fees, and how we handle these cases.

Jordan S. Weinberg, Esq.

Founder & Managing Attorney, Atlas Immigration Law

Member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and the Dallas Bar Association. Licensed to practice in Texas; fluent in English and Spanish.

Legally reviewed by a licensed immigration attorney

This guide is general information, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Immigration law and procedures change, and how they apply depends on your specific facts — consult a licensed immigration attorney about your situation.