The applicant in this case had a job opportunity for a Netbackup Engineer position where he would be responsible for the analysis, configuration, and implementation of Symantec Netbackup infrastructure.

The applicant went to a land port-of-entry with a contract from his employer that listed the position as a Netbackup Engineer, and had a brief description of his job duties. The inspecting officer refused to issue a TN because the officer did not see the position of Netbackup Engineer on the NAFTA Appendix list of occupations eligible for TN visa status.

The applicant contacted our office for a review of his case. After learning more about the position offered, we concluded that the position was classifiable under the Computer Systems Analyst TN category. The problem was that the initial application did not sufficiently show how the position fell under this category. We prepared a more detailed TN application package for the applicant, which included a support letter that fully explained the applicant’s job duties with respect to the Symantec Netbackup platform.

As part of the supporting documentation, we included decisions from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which held that the job duties of a position determine the appropriate occupational classification for purposes of NAFTA and not the job title.  We also assembled documentation explaining the Symantec Netbackup product, as well as materials that classified Symantec NetBackup Engineer positions as Systems Analysts. We also highlighted how the duties involved in the position were comparable to those performed by a Computer Systems Analyst as described in the Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH).

Following a review of these application materials and an interview at a land port-of-entry, the applicant was issued a TN under the Computer Systems Analyst category.