Published AAO appeal decisions

A petitioner sought EB-1A extraordinary ability classification. The AAO dismissed the appeal on procedural grounds, finding the signature on Form I-290B did not match the petitioner's signatures elsewhere in the record, rendering the appeal not properly filed and lacking valid legal standing.

Business owner self-petitioner in disposable personal hygiene products manufacturing sought EB-1A extraordinary ability. AAO affirmed dismissal finding petitioner satisfied no three initial criteria; original contributions claim based on industry standard participation lacked sufficient evidence of major significance.

A food and wine entrepreneur planning to open a restaurant sought EB-2 classification as an individual of exceptional ability, with a national interest waiver. The AAO dismissed the appeal, concluding that only one of the five claimed criteria was met rather than the required three, and reserved the waiver issue.

Enterprise account engineer sought national interest waiver under EB-2, proposing consulting services to SMEs for cloud migration and cybersecurity modernization. AAO found endeavor lacked sufficient evidence of prospective national importance, focusing on her individual consulting work rather than field-wide or broader economic impact.

Musician and music teacher seeks NIW for EB-2 to establish national network of rhythm therapy centers. USCIS found substantial merit but AAO affirmed no national importance shown; petitioner not well-positioned to advance without evidence of scalable model implementation.

An aircraft technician seeks EB-2 NIW based on exceptional ability and national interest waiver. AAO found the proposed endeavor has substantial merit but lacks national importance. Although the petitioner cited aviation safety and training programs, he did not demonstrate how his specific work or training would produce broad impacts or substantial economic effects at national scale.

Computer engineer with 2023 PhD in electrical engineering claimed three criteria. Two were accepted at service center level. AAO affirmed original contributions not met because citations and support letters reflect only incremental research progress, not widespread field recognition of major significance. Appeal dismissed.

International consultant and policy analyst self-petitioner claimed four alternate criteria for extraordinary ability. AAO upheld USCIS denial, finding petitioner met only the leading role criterion but failed on awards, published material, and original contributions. Threshold of three criteria not satisfied; final merits declined.

Ph.D. candidate in computer science developing AI models for e-commerce claimed four criteria. AAO affirmed judging and scholarly articles but rejected published material and original contributions. Limited field adoption and insufficient impact preclude extraordinary ability finding.

A physician seeking EB-2 classification with NIW claimed his proposed endeavor merits waiver of job offer requirement. The AAO held the endeavor lacks sufficient national importance under Dhanasar because it relies on alignment with government priorities rather than demonstrating specific, prospective national impact.

Chemical engineer seeking EB-2 NIW to start U.S. consulting company. Claimed extensive petrochemical industry experience and customer interest demonstrate national importance and economic impact. AAO held specific proposed endeavor lacks national importance; prior work experience and customer letters relate to second prong, not national importance of proposed venture itself.

The petitioner's occupation is not stated in the available text. The appeal of an extraordinary ability denial was dismissed on procedural grounds because the signature on the appeal form appeared to be a copied image rather than a valid handwritten signature, so the appeal was not properly filed and no criteria were reviewed.

IT consultant from Brazil sought EB-1A classification claiming seven criteria. AAO found one criterion met (scholarly articles) but dismissed appeal because petitioner failed to establish sustained national or international acclaim and top-tier recognition required for extraordinary ability.

A power electronics researcher sought EB-2 classification with national interest waiver. The AAO dismissed the appeal because the petitioner failed to define a specific proposed endeavor, instead providing only broad aspirational statements about developing experimental setups for semiconductors, making all three Dhanasar prongs unadjustable.

Hammered dulcimer artist and music educator sought EB-1A extraordinary ability to promote hammered dulcimer education and address educational gap. Claimed three criteria on appeal; AAO found petitioner did not satisfy membership or original contributions criteria, and waived remaining claims, thus failing to meet three-criterion threshold.

An aviation pilot and entrepreneur sought NIW to develop flight planning software for general aviation. The AAO dismissed the appeal, finding insufficient evidence of national importance; the proposed endeavor's benefits appeared limited to the petitioner's startup without demonstrating broader impacts on the aviation industry or economy.

Business owner sought NIW to produce non-GMO fruit preserves. Qualified for underlying EB-2 advanced degree classification. AAO dismissed appeal because petitioner failed to demonstrate endeavor has national importance independent of alignment with governmental agricultural priorities; small local operation with fifteen projected employees lacked demonstrable broader economic or industry impact.

A computer scientist with a Ph.D. in computer science seeks EB-2 with NIW. The AAO dismissed the appeal, finding she misunderstood national importance requirements and failed to show her proposed endeavor would impact the field broadly. Routine or incremental contributions without broader implications do not satisfy the Dhanasar standard.

Cybersecurity professional with master's degree sought EB-2 NIW for developing post-quantum cryptography toolkits for small and medium institutions. AAO found endeavor lacked demonstrated national importance: proposed work and supporting evidence did not establish prospective impact, funding plan, timeline, or scale of utilization commensurate with national benefit.

Business operations specialist seeking EB-1A extraordinary ability classification. Claimed high salary, membership, original contributions, and leading role criteria. AAO held high salary determination by service center withdrawn due to lack of comparative evidence; membership criterion not met; beneficiary cannot achieve required three-criterion threshold.

A postdoctoral researcher in machine learning and energy systems claimed EB-1A extraordinary ability. The AAO held he met only two criteria (judging and scholarly articles) but failed on original contributions and leading role, thus not meeting the three-criterion threshold.

Research scholar and professor claims extraordinary ability. Met three regulatory criteria but failed final merits determination. AAO found evidence does not demonstrate sustained national or international acclaim required for small percentage at top of field.

A drilling engineer with an advanced degree sought an EB-2 national interest waiver for a predictive maintenance project. The AAO found the endeavor has substantial merit but lacks demonstrated national importance beyond the employer and immediate business partners, failing the first Dhanasar prong. The appeal was dismissed without reaching the second and third prongs.

A photographer, visual strategist, and editor seeks EB-1A classification. The AAO found she met initial criteria but lacked sustained national or international acclaim sufficient to demonstrate extraordinary ability. The decision dismissed the appeal because the cumulative evidence did not place her among the small percentage at the top of her field.