Published AAO appeal decisions

Teacher claiming extraordinary ability under EB-1A. AAO dismissed appeal, finding petitioner met zero of the evidentiary criteria claimed; awards lack recognition, memberships unsubstantiated, published material insufficient, judging participation undocumented. Threshold of three criteria not met.

A musician and music educator sought EB-2 immigrant classification with national interest waiver. SCOPS established advanced degree eligibility but denied the waiver. The AAO remanded because SCOPS failed to sufficiently analyze the three Dhanasar prongs and did not put the petitioner on notice of evidentiary deficiencies.

Ethnomusicology researcher meets four initial criteria (publications, judging, scholarly articles, critical role) but AAO held totality of evidence does not demonstrate sustained national or international acclaim or small-percentage-at-top status: publication record typical for specialized field, media coverage lacks comparative context, and judging not shown to be prestigious.

Sociologist with PhD focused on women and policy in Bangladesh sought EB-1A extraordinary ability. AAO found she met only two of ten criteria and lacked the sustained national or international acclaim required for the small percentage at the very top of her field.

A historian and rabbi in Jewish studies sought EB-1A extraordinary ability classification. AAO dismissed because the petitioner satisfied none of four claimed evidentiary criteria and failed to demonstrate sustained national or international acclaim or positioning among the very top of the field.

Secondary school teacher seeking NIW as EB-2 advanced degree professional to implement STEM program. Qualified for EB-2 but failed first Dhanasar prong: program benefits constrained to participating schools and students; scalability and alignment with federal priorities insufficient for national importance. Appeal dismissed.

Art history professor and researcher claimed extraordinary ability under EB-1A. Met three initial criteria: published material, judging, and scholarly articles. AAO dismissed on final merits, finding insufficient evidence of sustained national or international acclaim or placement among the small percentage at the very top of the field.

A petitioner sought EB-2 NIW classification for a Russian economics graduate. The AAO dismissed her combined motion to reopen and reconsider, holding the bachelor degree was completed in less than four years and the academic evaluation did not credibly establish foreign equivalency to a U.S. four-year degree.

An honorary research professor in classical studies claimed seven evidentiary criteria for extraordinary ability. The service center accepted judging and scholarly articles. The AAO dismissed the appeal, finding the contested awards, membership, contributions and leading-role criteria unmet, so the three-criterion threshold failed and final merits were not reached.

Educator proposing nationwide framework for teacher quality and early childhood education, seeking EB-2 NIW. AAO held petitioner failed Dhanasar prong two: insufficient evidence of being well positioned to advance endeavor given limited experience and lack of stakeholder support from relevant officials.

STEM education platform developer sought EB-2 with national interest waiver. Petitioner established substantial merit but failed to demonstrate national importance of specific online educational endeavor. Platform lacks broader field impact beyond prospective students; revenue projections and employment forecasts do not show substantial national economic effects.

Airline pilot and engineer seeks NIW for EB-2 to establish aviation safety training company in HUBZone. AAO dismissed appeal, finding endeavor has substantial merit but lacks national importance; speculative training program lacks broad implications beyond proposed company clientele.

An urban and regional planning researcher sought EB-2 classification with a national interest waiver. The AAO found the proposed endeavor had substantial merit but lacked national importance, as it did not demonstrate novel innovation or broader field-wide impact comparable to Dhanasar examples. The first NIW prong failed, and remaining prongs were not reached; the appeal was dismissed.

An educational technologist from Brazil sought EB-1A extraordinary ability classification. She claimed eight initial criteria; the AAO found scholarly articles and judging met, but awards and membership not met, leaving only two criteria satisfied. Because at least three criteria are required, the AAO dismissed the appeal without reaching final merits.

Special education coordinator sought EB-2 NIW to establish Texas education consultancy. AAO dismissed appeal, finding petitioner failed to establish national importance of the specific endeavor, which lacked identifiable unique methodologies or prospective broad impact beyond local service provision.

A professional in international educational development with advanced degree sought NIW under EB-2. AAO dismissed because while the field is important, the petitioner failed to demonstrate national importance of her specific endeavor—placing visiting teachers in U.S. classrooms—which lacks broad implications beyond limited participants.

Education and public safety specialist seeks EB-2 NIW for proposed security services business and training company. Petitioner qualifies as advanced degree professional but failed to establish national importance of endeavor or evidence of success positioning her to advance it, thus ineligible for waiver.

A teacher self-petitioned for extraordinary ability classification (EB-1A). She claimed seven criteria including membership, judging, original contributions, authorship, leading role, and high salary. The AAO found none met: membership did not require outstanding achievements, original contributions lacked significance, article was not in major publication, and role was not critical at a distinguished organization.

Director of English for Academic Purposes Program claims extraordinary ability through judging and scholarly articles, and leading role at university. AAO affirmed that judging and articles met criteria but rejected leading role claim because the university's distinguished reputation was insufficiently demonstrated. Threshold of three criteria not satisfied; appeal dismissed.

An early childhood educator and behavioral counselor with master's degree sought EB-2 national interest waiver for consulting business training educators in underserved communities. The AAO dismissed, holding that the proposed endeavor lacks national importance; working in an important field, addressing labor shortages, or providing regional services does not establish prospective impact at a national level.

A professor seeks EB-1A visa. Appeal dismissed because petitioner satisfied only one of required three initial evidentiary criteria. Published material and artistic display criteria were not demonstrated; leading role criterion was not reached. Petitioner lacks evidence of sustained national or international acclaim.

A robotics educator seeks EB-2 classification to develop a STEM education model teaching applied robotics to vulnerable youth. AAO held the petitioner failed to meet exceptional ability requirements, satisfying only two of ten criteria, and did not reach the national interest waiver analysis.

Legal educator seeks EB-1A extraordinary ability classification. Claimed four criteria including membership and scholarly articles. AAO found membership criterion not met, treated published material and judging as abandoned through failure to respond to RFE, and determined aggregate evidence fails to show sustained national or international acclaim required for classification.

Self-petitioner teacher proposes English language instruction business in Florida targeting legal immigrant communities, claiming alignment with federal immigration priorities. AAO dismissed because petitioner failed to establish national importance; addressing important social issue insufficient; no evidence of broader field impact, substantial economic effects, or nationwide job creation.

Archaeology business petitions for O-1 visa for archaeologist beneficiary. Appeal dismissed on consultation requirement grounds: Turkish-American organization consulted lacked demonstrated expertise in archaeology or archaeology business. Merits regarding evidentiary criteria reserved and not decided.