Foreign Credential Evaluation

USCIS does not maintain an official "approved" list of evaluation agencies, but in practice, reports from NACES and AICE member organizations are most widely accepted. NACES members include: WES (World Education Services), ECE (Educational Credential Evaluators), IERF (International Education Research Foundation), FIS (Foundation for International Services), Josef Silny & Associates, SpanTran, Global Credential Evaluators, Academic Evaluation Services, and A2Z Evaluations, among others. WES is the most commonly used agency for immigration applications. It is advisable to use an agency recommended by your attorney to ensure the report is accepted by USCIS.

A Chinese four-year bachelor's degree is typically evaluated as equivalent to a U.S. four-year bachelor's degree. A Chinese three-year college diploma usually does not equate to a U.S. bachelor's degree and may need to be supplemented with work experience to meet requirements (e.g., under the H-1B "3 years of work experience equals 1 year of education" rule). A Chinese master's degree is generally equivalent to a U.S. master's degree. Chinese five-year undergraduate programs (e.g., medicine, architecture) may be evaluated as a bachelor's or master's degree depending on curriculum content.

WES charges approximately $160 for a Document-by-Document evaluation and $205 for a Course-by-Course evaluation. ECE charges approximately $135 for a basic evaluation and $195 for a detailed evaluation. Rush services typically cost an additional $50–$80. Additionally, Chinese degree verification through CSSD/ costs approximately RMB 300. Total costs are generally in the range of $200–$400 (including verification and shipping).

Most immigration applications (H-1B, EB-2, EB-3) require only a Document-by-Document evaluation confirming the foreign credential's U.S. degree equivalency. A Course-by-Course evaluation analyzes individual courses and is generally used for academic admissions, professional licensing, or when demonstrating that specific coursework aligns with a specialty occupation. If an H-1B petition involves degree-occupation match issues (e.g., the applicant's degree field is not perfectly aligned with the job duties), a Course-by-Course evaluation may be more helpful.

Yes. Chinese degree verification services have been transferred from CDGDC (China Academic Degrees and Graduate Education Development Center) to CSSD. All academic credential and degree verifications are now unified on the platform (www.chsi.com.cn). Applicants need to register an account on, apply for online verification reports for both academic credentials and degrees, and then authorize delivery to the evaluation agency (e.g., WES).

If a foreign credential does not directly equate to a U.S. bachelor's degree (e.g., a three-year diploma), several options are available: (1) USCIS allows work experience to substitute for education — typically, three years of progressive professional experience equates to one year of university education; (2) complete additional coursework in the U.S. or online to earn equivalent credits; (3) apply for visa categories that do not require a specific degree (e.g., O-1 or EB-1A, which are based on ability rather than academic credentials). Consult with an attorney to determine the best strategy.