Denied TN petition

K

kanuk@york

Registered Users (C)
I've been in the US under TN for many years. I've renewed VIA POE and processing center many times. However last week, I was denied entry because they did not determine my educational requirements to be adequate. The officer told me that they could not verify the college info and it did not appear to be an accredited educational institute. She recommended I get a equivalency assessment.

I informed my attorney, and she sent my educational info to an specialized institute. The firm concluded that I did have the equivalency of and associate degree in information systems. After receiving the package VIA email, I printed everything and went to another POE (closer to my temporary residence) and the officer denied my petition on the following grounds:

1) did not have originals document with signatures.
2) The evaluation center was not on a "master list". Although they are accredited by the USCIS and this is stated on the company's website.
3) I was at the POE after business hours and they could not corroborate evaluation.
4) could find any information about the college.

I was really puzzled by item number 4 and started to investigate. Well, as I was digging, I found out that the college that I attended was acquired in 2003 and operates under a different name! That explains why the officers could not find any information! To mitigate this, I went to student services and explained my situation and they printed a memo on official college letterhead detailing the name change and it was signed by the registrar.

I guess I have 3 questions at this time:

1) Should I go to the first or second POE? I don't want to appear to be port shopping! But the first POE is almost 3H from my temporary residence.

2) Can an officer discard an evaluation based on it's origin? The company is accredited and my attorney has been doing business with them for many years.

3) IS there a list of accredited evaluation centers out there?


Thanks
 
Hi

My apologies if this is a little off track from your questions but is there concern that you have been denied entry twice and a possible third will mean you can no longer enter? My husband has been denied twice over the years and the thought of being denied a third time always worries us.

Warm wishes, and hopefully the experienced members on the forum (nelsona for example :) ) will answer your queries soon.

Q
 
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fraquir 1995

Thank you for your wishes. It means a lot.

The way I see it, here is the chronology.

I first got denied on the basis of the diploma. Then I got the necessary information but got denied because they could not find any details on the school and the evaluation center (I was there at 10:30PM)

So I've addressed the concerns of the first refusal and if I return, I'm addressing the issues of the second. I don't think this constitute port shopping. But I agree with you that I don't want to piss off CPB.

Best regards.
 
C'mon york. You've wasted money on a lawyer, so kick her butt for letting you down. Neither of you is acting in a professional manner, butr she should know better.

You always bring originals (and a courtesy copy for the offcier), and you always go during business hours.

And UofT and WES are the services to use, and get an original certification of their evaluation, not some fax/e-mail.

And you always return to the POE that first raised the objections.
 
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Update

First off, I will spare you the suspense and I'm happy to report that my petition was approved. It took over a week, but everything is back to normal. Thanks to the moderator and everyone using this forum. There is tons of useful stuff here.

After going through this process I can now post some answers to the questions I posted last week.

1) did not have originals document with signatures. Part of their job when assessing your petition is to determine if the documents are forged or counterfeit. No originals, they will simply deny your petition without any additional considerations.

2) The evaluation center was not on a "master list". Although they are accredited by the USCIS and this is stated on the company's website. There is no list of evaluation centers in the treaty! The evaluation has to be performed by reputable center. It is true that agents at a POE have names on a preferred list. But they cannot deny your petition on this basis.

3) I was at the POE after business hours and they could not corroborate evaluation. I have to agree with Nelsona here... present yourself during business hours.

4) could find any information about the college. I went to the new college and they were happy to draft a letter supporting the name change... officer reviewed the letter and everything was ok.

So advise to everyone! Consider every "renewal" at the POE as a new petition! Have your paperwork in order and don't assume that the renewal will be automatic. In my case, the agent was not able to find any information about the college and that was enough to deny my petition.

If your petition is denied, pay close attention to the officer's notes. They have an obligation to disclose the basis of the denial and they will often tell you how to correct any issues. If possible, return to the same POE. If you can't, make sure you have your story straight, because the next officer will know and expect you to have rectified any gaps in your petition.

Finally, don't port shop! Officers are cracking down and this practice could land you in a ton of trouble.

Good luck to all and thanks again.
 
Consider every "renewal" at the POE as a new petition!
Click to expand...
It is a new petition! What made you ever think otherwise?

Another tip: how about reading up and asking questions here before going to the border.
 
Update

nelsona said:
It is a new petition! What made you ever think otherwise?

Another tip: how about reading up and asking questions here before going to the border.
Click to expand...

I've been up and down 81 to do this procedure so many times, it seemed routine. Totally my fault!!! Hope others can learn and be better prepared.

Thanks again
 
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