Published AAO appeal decisions

A chief executive with advanced electrical engineering degree sought EB-2 national interest waiver to start an energy efficiency consulting business. The AAO rejected the petition, finding the proposed endeavor lacked national importance. Working in renewable energy alone does not establish national importance; the specific business must show broader prospective economic impact beyond serving individual clients.

A construction project manager with an engineering master's degree sought an EB-2 classification with a national interest waiver, proposing to lead infrastructure projects using sustainable and resilient methods. The AAO dismissed the appeal because the specific endeavor was not shown to have national importance, and it reserved the remaining prongs.

Business analyst and trade consultant seeks EB-2 classification with national interest waiver for data analytics platform targeting maritime security and trade transparency. AAO affirmed that proposed endeavor lacks national importance and petitioner is not well positioned to advance it; insufficient evidence of economic or security impact.

A digital marketing company sponsors a data scientist for EB-2 with national interest waiver. The AAO found the beneficiary qualified for EB-2 with an advanced degree and the endeavor has substantial merit, but rejected the waiver because the petitioner failed to demonstrate the proposed work has national importance, only that STEM fields are important generally.

A senior SoC researcher sought EB-2 NIW under Dhanasar. The AAO found substantial merit and national importance of his hardware security research but held he failed to show he is well-positioned to advance it, lacking contemporaneous evidence of impact or specific advancement plan.

A quality control manager with an advanced degree seeks EB-2 national interest waiver. The AAO dismissed the appeal, finding the beneficiary's proposed work as a quality control manager lacked sufficient prospective impact to satisfy the national importance prong of Dhanasar, even in a strategically important defense infrastructure sector.

Computer scientist with advanced degree proposed developing computer vision and large language models for drug discovery. AAO found SCOPS failed to adequately analyze whether endeavor has substantial merit and national importance, contained contradictory statements on second prong, and insufficiently analyzed third prong. Decision withdrawn and remanded.

A machine learning scientist with a U.S. PhD in computational biosciences sought EB-2 NIW classification for developing bioinformatics algorithms and predictive models for disease detection and precision medicine. The AAO affirmed denial, finding the endeavor had substantial merit but lacked national importance and the petitioner was not well positioned to advance it without demonstrating broader impact or employer approval for external research dissemination.

A research and development engineer in textile materials science sought a national interest waiver for work on durable protective textiles. The AAO agreed the endeavor has merit and national importance but dismissed the appeal because education, publications, citations and letters did not show he was well positioned to advance it; the balancing prong was reserved.

An entrepreneur in civil engineering with a Brazilian engineering degree sought EB-2 classification with a national interest waiver for a construction management company focusing on infrastructure modernization and sustainability. The AAO dismissed because the petitioner did not demonstrate that her specific endeavor would have substantial national importance beyond general industry benefits.

Event planner sought EB-2 with national interest waiver for a consultancy firm in event planning and training. The AAO dismissed the appeal, finding the petitioner failed to establish national importance; the business impact was limited to the company and its clients with no demonstrated industry-wide influence or substantial economic effect.

An entrepreneur in STEM education proposed to establish a coding academy for underrepresented groups. The AAO found the endeavor has substantial merit but lacks national importance as a specific undertaking, and dismissed the appeal without addressing remaining Dhanasar prongs.

Senior manager of data science with Ph.D. in biostatistics sought EB-2 NIW to develop multivariate temporal models using AI for gene regulatory networks and socioeconomic systems. AAO found proposed research has national importance but petitioner's employment role only benefits employer, not the nation; petitioner not well positioned to advance endeavor.

Senior machine learning engineer proposes research on foundational model disentanglement and interpretability. AAO found the endeavor has substantial merit and national importance but rejected the petition because the petitioner failed to demonstrate she is well-positioned to advance it through sufficient record of success or influence in the field.

Senior software engineer with PhD in computer science proposes distributed query optimization research. AAO found the research endeavor meritorious but distinguished between proposed independent research and employer-specific benefits, finding the latter lacks national importance. Petition dismissed because petitioner failed second prong.

Entrepreneur seeks national interest waiver for EB-2 classification but lacks required advanced degree or proven exceptional ability. AAO held she failed to establish advanced degree eligibility and that her proposed endeavor lacks national importance; serves underserved clients but lacks broader field impact, accomplishments, or demonstrated track record.

A senior research scientist with a PhD sought national interest waiver for EB-2 classification in artificial intelligence and privacy technology. The AAO dismissed the appeal, finding the proposed research lacked demonstrated national importance under Dhanasar's first prong despite the field's merit and importance.

Clinical trials specialist sought NIW for EB-2 to increase ethnic minority participation in drug development. AAO affirmed denial, finding the proposed seven-person business lacked sufficient national importance in healthcare or economy despite furthering a valid national goal of eliminating health disparities.

A software engineer sought NIW for cloud computing work. AAO agreed that although the field has substantial merit, the petitioner's specific proposed endeavor lacks national importance. Petitioner failed to demonstrate broader implications beyond his company or how his work would impact the industry or region more broadly.

Physical chemist seeks NIW for research on surface science machines and heterogeneous catalysis for clean energy. Substantial merit established but national importance not demonstrated. Petitioner presented general field importance and air quality statistics but failed to show specific prospective impact of proposed endeavor. Appeal dismissed.

A neuroscience researcher with a Ph.D. in neurobiology and six years of postdoctoral experience sought an EB-2 national interest waiver for research on neuropathic pain. The AAO reversed the service center's denial, finding the proposed endeavor had substantial merit and national importance, the petitioner was well positioned to advance it, and a waiver would benefit the United States.

Actuarial associate sought EB-2 with national interest waiver to provide AI and machine learning solutions improving pension program solvency for public servants. The AAO dismissed, holding the petitioner failed to demonstrate the proposed endeavor has national importance; letters of support and general field importance do not establish the specific endeavor's broader implications.

Aerospace engineer and robotics researcher sought EB-2 with national interest waiver to research autonomous decision-making algorithms. The AAO found the proposed endeavor had substantial merit and national importance but dismissed the appeal because the petitioner failed to show he was well positioned to advance the research through publications with minimal citations and insufficient evidence of research impact.

Veterinarian entrepreneur seeks EB-2 national interest waiver to establish rural veterinary services firm in New York. Proposed providing affordable livestock veterinary care and food safety services. AAO found endeavor has substantial merit but lacks national importance; projected employment and revenue insufficient to demonstrate impact beyond local clients.

Petitioner is an applied scientist with a master's degree in computer science proposing AI research. The AAO dismissed the appeal because the petitioner failed to establish that his specific proposed endeavor has national importance; generalized claims about AI advancement without detailed prospective work plans are insufficient.