music education
EB-2 National Interest Waiver — Merits Decision
Underlying petition: DENIED · Service Center Operations
Legal elements discussed — Matter of Dhanasar
Prong 1 — Substantial Merit & National Importance
NOT_DISCUSSEDPetitioner argued: The proposed endeavor has both substantial merit and national importance.
Evidence type: career plan
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) finding: NOT_DISCUSSED
“SCOPS determined that the Petitioner established the substantial merit of her endeavor, but did not meet her burden to show its national importance”
Decision PDF, p. 2Open source PDF
Prong 2 — Well Positioned to Advance the Endeavor
NOT_DISCUSSEDPetitioner argued: The individual is well-positioned to advance their proposed endeavor.
Evidence type: career plan
USCIS finding: NOT_DISCUSSED
“SCOPS determined that the Petitioner established the substantial merit of her endeavor, but did not meet her burden to show its national importance, that she is well-positioned to advance it”
Decision PDF, p. 2Open source PDF
Prong 3 — Balancing the Waiver's Benefits
NOT_DISCUSSEDPetitioner argued: On balance, waiving the job offer requirement would benefit the United States.
Evidence type: not specified
USCIS finding: NOT_DISCUSSED
“SCOPS stated the third prong's balancing analysis and concluded that the Petitioner 'has not established that, on balance, it would be beneficial to the United States to waive the requirements of a job offer and thus of a labor certification.' However, SCOPS did not adequately explain how the evidence in the record led to that determination.”
Decision PDF, p. 3Open source PDF
What 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 discussed music education. Describe your own work and see which decisions discussed the same issue.
Describe your situation →Related decisions
Questions this raises for your lawyer
- This decision was resolved before reaching the Dhanasar merits analysis. What does my case need to establish first — the underlying EB-2 classification itself — before the national-interest question is even reached?
- 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?