Late last month, the Chamber and its allies asked that the White House now used to define "specialized knowledge."

Under immigration rules, "specialized knowledge" is defined as "beyond the ordinary and not commonplace within the industry." The definition is designed to keep companies from using the L-1 visa as a substitute to the H-1B visa.

The "specialized knowledge" definition gives immigration officials leeway, particularly through the guidance they give to adjudicators who approve or deny visa applications.

The IT groups, the Chamber and other firms complain that immigration officials are delaying and rejecting increasing numbers of L-1 visas, and are interpreting "specialized knowledge" in ways that are outside the law.

The IEEE-USA, in a letter Tuesday to Alejandro Mayorkas, director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), points out that some of the companies seeking changes in the L-1 visa "specialized knowledge" defnition are .