ORDER ON CROSS-MOTIONS FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT
This matter comes before the Court pursuant to Motion for Summary Judgment by Plaintiff, Raj and Company (“Raj”) (Dkt. # 16), and Cross-Motion for Summary Judgment by Defendants, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) and the United States Department of Homeland Security (Dkt. # 19). Plaintiff moves the Court to reverse USCIS’s denial of Plaintiffs petition for an H-1B “specialty occupation” visa. Neither party has requested oral argument, and the Court deems it unnecessary. Having considered the parties’ memoranda and the underlying administrative record, and for the reasons stated herein, the Court grants Plaintiffs Motion for Summary Judgment and denies Defendants’ Cross-Motion for Summary Judgment.
BACKGROUND
Plaintiff Raj & Company is a ten-person company based in Yakima, Washington that operates gas stations, convenience stores, and hotels. Dkt. # 14, Certified Administrative Record (“AR”) at 218. On October 13, 2011, Raj filed a Form 1-129 Petition for Nonimmigrant Worker with USCIS seeking to classify Rashna R. Ka-jal, a citizen of the Republic of Fiji, as a nonimmigrant special occupation worker under section 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (“INA”). AR at 213 et seq. Raj sought to employ Ms. Kajal as “Marketing Analyst & Specialist” out of its Yakima office for a three-year period in order to assist the company in assessing market and geographical opportunities for expanding its hotel and convenience store business in the region and throughout the state. Id. at 23, 217-18. Ms. Kajal has earned a Bachelor of Science degree and certificate in Business Management and Marketing from Brigham Young University in Hawaii and provided copies of her diploma and transcripts to USCIS. Id. at 269-70.
On February 2, 2012, USCIS issued a Request for Evidence, asking Raj to submit additional evidence pertaining to the subject job offer, including evidence of the need for the proffered position, information regarding Raj’s business operations, and any documentation about industry practices or Raj’s own past employment practices related to employment of market research analysts. AR at 12-13. Plaintiff responded with substantial amounts of evidence on April 27, 2012. Id. at 14 et seq. USCIS nonetheless denied the H-1B visa application on October 27, 2012 on the sole grounds that Raj had failed to demonstrate that the proffered position qualifies as a specialty occupation within the meaning of applicable regulations. Id. at 2-9.
APPLICABLE LEGAL STANDARDS
A. Judicial Review of Administrative Decision
The Administrative Procedure Act authorizes judicial review where a person “suffer[s] legal wrong because of agency action, or [is] adversely affected or aggrieved by agency action within the meaning of the relevant statute.” 5 U.S.C. § 702. The reviewing district court is, in turn, empowered to set aside a final agency action if it is “arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not in accordance with law.” 5 U.S.C. § 706(2)(A). The standard is “highly deferential, presuming the agency action to be valid.” Kern County Farm Bureau v. Allen,
The agency’s factual findings are reviewed for substantial evidence and will, not be disturbed “unless the evidence presented would compel a reasonable finder of fact to reach a contrary result.” Family Inc. v. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services,
B. Summary Judgment Standard
Courts routinely resolve APA challenges through summary judgment motions. See Northwest Motorcycle Ass’n v. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture,
Judicial review of an agency action is confined to the administrative record. National Association of Home Builders v. Norton,
ANALYSIS
Plaintiff argues that USCIS abused its discretion in denying Raj’s H-1B visa petition. Specifically, Plaintiff contends that USCIS reached a decision not supported by the evidence when it determined that Raj had failed to sustain its burden of proving that the proffered position qualifies as a “specialty occupation.” USCIS, by contrast, argues that the agency properly acted within the scope of its discretion when it found that Raj had failed to establish that any of the enumerated criteria for qualification as a “specialty occupation” were met.
I. Applicable Statutory and Regulatory Framework
The INA permits qualified nonimmi-grant aliens to temporarily perform services in the United States if they are sponsored by an employer in a “specialty occupation.” 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b). Before a visa may issue, an employer must obtain certification from the Department of Labor that it has filed a labor condition application in the specific occupational specialty. 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(ii). The employer must then file an H-1B visa petition on behalf of the alien worker, which shows that the proffered position satisfies the statutory and regulatory requirements. 8 U.S.C. § 1184(c). The INA defines a “specialty occupation” as 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.
8 U.S.C. § 1184®.
USCIS has also enacted agency regulations fleshing out Hl-B requirements. The regulations define “specialty occupation” and provide a non-exhaustive list of fields that may satisfy the definition:
Specialty occupation means an occupation which requires theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge in fields of human endeavor including, but not limited to, architecture, engineering, mathematics, physical sciences, social sciences, medicine and health, education, business specialties, accounting, law, theology, and the arts, and which requires the attainment of a bachelor’s degree or higher in a specific specialty, or its equivalent, as a minimum for entry into the occupation in the United States.
8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(h). USCIS further developed a set of four criteria to determine whether an occupation qualifies as a “specialty occupation,” one of which must be satisfied:
(1) A baccalaureate or higher degree or its equivalent is normally the minimum requirement for entry into a particular position;
(2) The degree requirement is common to the industry in parallel positions among similar organization or, in the alternative, an employer may show that its particular position is so complex or unique that it can be performed only by an individual with a degree;
(3) The employer normally requires a degree or its equivalent for the position; or
(4) The nature of the specific duties are so specialized and complex that knowledge required to perform the duties is usually associated with the attainment of a baccalaureate or higher degree.
Upon establishing that a position is a “specialty occupation,” the H-1B visa petitioner must also demonstrate that the alien worker is qualified to work in such a position. See 8 U.S.C. § 1184(i)(2); Caremax,
II. Application of the Regulatory Criteria
The parties -agree that the only issue before the Court is whether Raj’s proffered position qualifies as a “specialty occupation” under the statutory and regulatory framework. Dkt. # 16, p. 2; Dkt. # 19, p. 10. The parties also agree that USCIS did not abuse its discretion in determining that, despite the .job title of “Marketing Analyst & Specialist” submitted by Raj, the proposed duties are most closely analogous to those of a “Market Research Analyst.” AR at 7; Dkt. #.16, p.-2; Dkt. #19, p. 10. Rather, Raj challenges the USCIS’s findings that the position of “Market Research Analyst” in general, and the position Raj seeks to fill in particular, do not meet the first, second, and fourth criteria enumerated in 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A). The Court agrees with Plaintiff that USCIS abused its discretion in determining that a “Market Research Analyst” does not come within the first qualifying criteria and thus reverses USCIS’s denial.
As an initial matter, the parties disagree as to whether a generalized bachelor degree requirement is sufficient to render a position sufficiently specialized to qualify for H-1B status. To this extent, the Court agrees with Defendant and finds the answer to this question well-settled in the case law and USCIS’s reasonable interpretations of the regulatory framework. While 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(l) does not use the language of “specific specialty,” USCIS does not abuse its discretion in reading this regulation together with 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(h), which defines a “specialty occupation” as one that “requires the attainment of a bachelor’s degree or higher in a specific specialty, or its equivalent.” See In re Petitioner [Identifying information redacted by Agency],
That said, the Court agrees with Plaintiff that it has plainly met its burden to show that the position of a “market research analyst” satisfies the first qualifying criterion. The first regulatory criterion requires the agency to examine the generic position requirements of a market research analyst in order to determine whether a specific bachelor’s degree or its equivalent is a minimum requirement for entry into the profession. In making this determination, USCIS relied, as is its practice, on the Department of Labor’s Occupation Outlook Handbook (“OOH”) profile of the market research analyst position. See Royal Siam Corp.,
Market research analysts typically need a bachelor’s degree in market research or a related field. Many have degrees in fields such as statistics, math, or computer science. Others have a background in business administration, one of the social sciences, or communications. Courses in statistics, research methods, and marketing are essential for these workers; courses in communications and social sciences — such as economics, psychology, and sociology — are also important.
Many market research analyst jobs require a master’s degree. Several schools offer graduate programs in marketing research, but many analysts complete degrees in other fields, such as statistics, marketing, or a Masters of Business Administration (MBA). A master’s degree is often required for leadership positions or positions that perform more technical research.
AR at 7. Based on this description, USCIS determined that “although a baccalaureate level of training is typical, the position of a Market Research Analysts is an occupation that does not require a baccalaureate level of education in a specific specialty as a normal, minimum for entry into the occupation.” AR at 7-8. This interpretation of the evidence cannot be sustained.
Defendant’s approach impermissibly narrows the plain language of the statute. The first regulatory criterion does not restrict qualifying occupations to those for which there exists a single, specifically tailored and titled degree program. Indeed, such an interpretation ignores the statutory and regulatory allowance for occupations that require the attainment of the “equivalent” of specialized bachelor’s degree as a threshold for entry. 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(h); 8 U.S.C. § 1184(i). By including this language, Congress and the INA recognized that the needs of a specialty occupation can be met even where a specifically tailored baccalaureate program is not typically available for a given field. See Tapis Intern. v. INS,
To this Court’s knowledge, the only reviewing court to have considered the
While judicial review of agency decisions is highly deferential, it is not without teeth. Agency action cannot survive judicial review where the agency fails to “articulate a satisfactory explanation for its action including a rational connection between the facts found and the choice made.” Motor Vehicle Mfrs. Ass’n of U.S., Inc. v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co.,
CONCLUSION
For the reasons discussed herein, the Court FINDS that USCIS committed an abuse of discretion by denying Raj’s petition for an H-1B visa for Ms. Kajal. Accordingly, the Court hereby GRANTS Plaintiffs Motion for Summary Judgment (Dkt. # 16) and DENIES Defendants’ Cross-Motion for Summary Judgment (Dkt. # 19). Defendants are ORDERED to GRANT Plaintiffs Petition for H-1B status.
Although Plaintiff included a request for attorney’s fees in the conclusion of its Motion, it has not demonstrated an entitlement to a fee award. Plaintiff must therefore file a separate motion for attorney’s fees within twenty (20) days of the entry of this Order should it wish to pursue a fee award.