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EB-2 National Interest Waiver — Merits Decision
Underlying petition: APPROVED · Service Center Operations (SCOPS)
Legal elements discussed — Matter of Dhanasar
Prong 1 — Substantial Merit & National Importance
FAILPetitioner argued: The proposed endeavor has national importance because it aligns with national priorities and will have broad societal benefits.
Evidence type: industry articles, support letters, letters to government officials
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) finding: INSUFFICIENT
“The Petitioner's articles and reports, however, do not mention or discuss his particular endeavor, including how it might impact the field more broadly and rise to the level of national importance.”
Decision PDF, p. 3Open source PDF
Petitioner argued: The proposed endeavor will have substantial positive economic effects.
Evidence type: generalized claims
USCIS finding: INSUFFICIENT
“he has not specifically detailed, much less quantified, the positive economic benefits he contends would be realized through his endeavor and how they would be significant enough to reach the level of 'substantial positive economic effects' contemplated by Dhanasar.”
Decision PDF, p. 5Open source PDF
Petitioner argued: The proposed endeavor will have broader implications for the field.
Evidence type: support letters
USCIS finding: INSUFFICIENT
“they are largely conclusory and do not specifically explain how the Petitioner's work, in particular, would produce such nationally important impacts.”
Decision PDF, p. 5Open 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 industry articles, support letters, letters to government officials insufficient to establish that the proposed endeavor has national importance because it aligns with national priorities and will have broad societal benefits.. 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?