financial consulting
EB-2 National Interest Waiver — Merits Decision
Underlying petition: DENIED · Service Center Operations (SCOPS)
Legal elements discussed — Matter of Dhanasar
Prong 1 — Substantial Merit & National Importance
FAILPetitioner argued: The endeavor will create high-value U.S. jobs.
Evidence type: business plan job projections
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) finding: INSUFFICIENT
“the Petitioner has not established that a projected staff of four employees demonstrates the endeavor's "significant potential to employ U.S. workers"”
Decision PDF, p. 3Open source PDF
Petitioner argued: The endeavor will have substantial positive economic effects through revenue projections and job creation.
Evidence type: business plan with five-year revenue projections
USCIS finding: INSUFFICIENT
“the Petitioner relies primarily on the monetary value of the transactions he intends to make as evidence of the endeavor's national importance, but he does not explain the national or global implications of the transactions or revenue projections.”
Decision PDF, p. 3Open source PDF
Petitioner argued: The endeavor has national importance due to its impact on FDI, technology, and global markets.
Evidence type: article on FDI and IPO Task Force executive summary
USCIS finding: INSUFFICIENT
“neither the article nor the report mentions the Petitioner's specific proposed endeavor, including how his future work might impact FDI, the technology sector, or global markets more broadly.”
Decision PDF, p. 3Open source PDF
Prong 2 — Well Positioned to Advance the Endeavor
NOT_DISCUSSEDProng 3 — Balancing the Waiver's Benefits
NOT_DISCUSSEDWhat this decision can’t tell you
This decision comes from a case that was denied and then appealed. Every case here is in that position — it cannot be used to estimate an overall approval rate, and it cannot predict the outcome of any individual case, including yours. USCIS officers exercise discretion on facts that are never fully captured in a written decision.
This decision turned on national importance. Describe your own work and see which decisions discussed the same issue.
Describe your situation →Related decisions
Questions this raises for your lawyer
- On Prong 1 (substantial merit & national importance), USCIS found the petitioner's business plan job projections insufficient to establish that the endeavor will create high-value U.S. jobs.. What would make comparable evidence in my own case more persuasive?
- What in my own case most resembles the specific facts USCIS focused on in this decision?
- Would additional expert-opinion evidence have changed the outcome here, based on what USCIS said was missing?