dismissed EB-2 NIW Case: Accounting

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
In Re: 17774407 
Appeal of Texas Service Center Decision 
Non-Precedent Decision of the 
Administrative Appeals Office 
Date : AUG . 30, 2021 
Form 1-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker (Advanced Degree, Exceptional Ability, National 
Interest Waiver) 
The Petitioner, an accountant, seeks second preference immigrant classification as a member of the 
professions holding an advanced degree, as well as a national interest waiver of the job offer 
requirement attached to this employment-based, "EB-2" classification. See Immigration and 
Nationality Act (the Act) section 203(b)(2), 8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(2) . 
The Director of the Texas Service Center denied the petition, concluding that the Petitioner had not 
established that a waiver of the required job offer, and thus of the labor certification, would be in the 
national interest. On appeal, the Petitioner submits a brief asserting that she is eligible for a national 
interest waiver. 
In these proceedings, it is the petitioner's burden to establish eligibility for the immigration benefit 
sought. Section 291 of the Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1361. Upon de nova review, we will dismiss the appeal. 
I. LAW 
To establish eligibility for a national interest waiver, a petitioner must first demonstrate qualification 
for the underlying EB-2 visa classification, as either an advanced degree professional or an individual 
of exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business. Because this classification requires that the 
individual's services be sought by a U.S . employer, a separate showing is required to establish that a 
waiver of the job offer requirement is in the national interest. 
Section 203(b) of the Act sets out this sequential framework: 
(2) Aliens who are members of the professions holding advanced degrees or aliens of 
exceptional ability. -
(A) In general. - Visas shall be made available ... to qualified immigrants who are 
members of the professions holding advanced degrees or their equivalent or 
who because of their exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business, will 
substantially benefit prospectively the national economy, cultural or 
educational interests, or welfare of the United States, and whose services in the 
sciences, arts, professions, or business are sought by an employer in the United 
States. 
(B) Waiver ofjob offer-
(i) National interest waiver. ... [T]he Attorney General may, when the Attorney 
General deems it to be in the national interest, waive the requirements of 
subparagraph (A) that an alien's services in the sciences, arts, professions, or 
business be sought by an employer in the United States. 
While neither the statute nor the pertinent regulations define the term "national interest," we set forth 
a framework for adjudicating national interest waiver petitions in the precedent decision Matter of 
Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. 884 (AAO 2016). 1 Dhanasar states that after a petitioner has established 
eligibility for EB-2 classification, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may, as matter 
of discretion 2, grant a national interest waiver if the petitioner demonstrates: (1) that the foreign 
national's proposed endeavor has both substantial merit and national importance; (2) that the foreign 
national is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor; and (3) 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. 
The first prong, substantial merit and national importance, focuses on the specific endeavor that the 
foreign national proposes to undertake. The endeavor's merit may be demonstrated in a range of areas 
such as business, entrepreneurialism, science, technology, culture, health, or education. In 
determining whether the proposed endeavor has national importance, we consider its potential 
prospective impact. 
The second prong shifts the focus from the proposed endeavor to the foreign national. To determine 
whether he or she is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor, we consider factors including, 
but not limited to: the individual's education, skills, knowledge and record of success in related or 
similar efforts; a model or plan for future activities; any progress towards achieving the proposed 
endeavor; and the interest of potential customers, users, investors, or other relevant entities or 
individuals. 
The third prong requires the petitioner to demonstrate 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. In performing 
this analysis, USCIS may evaluate factors such as: whether, in light of the nature of the foreign 
national's qualifications or the proposed endeavor, it would be impractical either for the foreign 
national to secure a job offer or for the petitioner to obtain a labor certification; whether, even assuming 
that other qualified U.S. workers are available, the United States would still benefit from the foreign 
national's contributions; and whether the national interest in the foreign national's contributions is 
sufficiently urgent to warrant forgoing the labor certification process. In each case, the factor(s) 
1 In announcing this new framework, we vacated our prior precedent decision, Matter of New York State Department of 
Transportation, 22 l&N Dec. 215 (Act. Assoc. Comm'r 1998) (NYSDOT). 
2 See also Poursina v. USC1S, No. 17-16579, 2019 WL 4051593 (Aug. 28, 2019) (finding USCIS' decision to grant or 
deny a national interest waiver to be discretionary in nature). 
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considered must, taken together, indicate 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. 3 
II. ANALYSIS 
The Petitioner's proposed endeavor is to offer finance and tax consulting services to U.S. companies 
as an accountant. The record indicates that the Petitioner qualifies as a member of the professions holding 
an advanced degree. The remaining issue to be determined is whether the Petitioner has established that 
a waiver of the requirement of a job offer, and thus a labor certification, would be in the national 
interest. For the reasons discussed below, we agree with the Director that the Petitioner has not 
sufficiently demonstrated the national importance of her proposed endeavor under the first prong of 
the Dhanasar analytical framework. 
Regarding her claim of eligibility under Dhanasar' s first prong, the Petitioner asserted that she intends 
to "advance her career as a Financial Accountant, developing business activities and promoting 
cross-border commercial transactions that will enhance, substantially, the United States economy." She 
further stated: 
My overall proposed endeavor in the United States is to offer my knowledge, experience, 
and expertise in the fields of accounting, finance, and taxation to American companies in 
a wide array of industries that are seeking to streamline and improve their internal 
accounting and finance processes and decrease their tax burdens and penalties. 
I propose to use my skills and knowledge gained through 11 years of professional 
experience, to support U.S. businesses as an Accountant for U.S. companies. Through 
my support, U.S. businesses can improve their tax management, financial planning, and 
human resource management, which will allow them to increase their revenue and 
opportunity for growth. 
The Petitioner also claimed that she intended to open her own accounting and tax consulting company in 
Florida, for which she would serve as the Chief Executive Officer. She indicated that she "will offer 
advice on international tax transactions, pursuant to the agreement on avoiding double taxation, a 
common dilemma with businesses involved in international trade for funded through foreign investment." 
She further stated that in addition to tax consulting, she would also offer "a wide array of quality, 
expedient, and professional accounting and bookkeeping services, as well as services in auditing, financial 
projection and statement preparations, and corporate accounting." She contended that her proposed work 
would support U.S. businesses in lessening their tax burden and maximizing their profits. Finally, she 
indicated that her knowledge of intricate distribution channels, bureaucratic government procedures, and 
complex financial and tax law regulation in Brazil will help U.S. companies seeking to enter the Brazilian 
market navigate the Brazilian political and bureaucratic environment successfully. 
The record includes information about accounting services in the United States, trends and hiring 
challenges in the accounting field, tax complexity in Brazil and the United States, and the Brazilian 
business environment. In addition, the Petitioner provided articles discussing a shortage of skilled 
3 See Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. at 888-91, for elaboration on these three prongs. 
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accountants in the United States, the complexity of Brazil 's tax regime, and the benefits of 
international investment. She also submitted information about industry demand for qualified 
accountants and financial professionals , and the impact of a talent shortage in the accounting industry. 
The Director determined that the Petitioner 's proposed work as an accountant and tax consultant has 
substantial merit. 
In determining national importance, the relevant question is not the importance of the field, industry, 
or profession in which the individual will work; instead we focus on the "the specific endeavor that 
the foreign national proposes to undertake." See Dhanasar , 26 I&N Dec. at 889. In Dhanasar, we 
further noted that "we look for broader implications" of the proposed endeavor and that "[ a ]n 
undertaking may have national importance for example, because it has national or even global 
implications within a particular field." Id. We also stated that "[a]n endeavor that has significant 
potential to employ U.S. workers or has other substantial positive economic effects, particularly in an 
economically depressed area, for instance, may well be understood to have national importance." Id. 
at 890. 
In her appeal brief, the Petitioner asserts that she has "over 11 years of progressive experience in the 
financial services industry, in which capacity she has worked in providing accounting and advisory 
services to large, multinational companies." She further stated that she is "a well-rounded accountant and 
financial management specialist with an intimate knowledge of the business environment, commercial, 
and financial services sector in Brazil and the United States." The Petitioner's education, skills, and 
knowledge in her field, however, relate to the second prong of the Dhanasar framework, which "shifts 
the focus from the proposed endeavor to the foreign national." Id. at 890. The issue here is whether the 
specific endeavor that she proposes to undertake has national importance under Dhanasar's first 
prong. 
The Petitioner argues that her proposed endeavor stands to produce "significant national benefits due to 
the ripple effects of her professional activities." She notes that while she may work for one company, her 
proposed endeavor "will affect the whole business ecosystem, as her served organizations, and potential 
clients, will directly improve the U.S. economy by participating in financial and investment activities 
throughout the United States." She claims that her proposed endeavor "will broadly enhance U.S. 
commercial interests, and prompt overall economic enrichment," as well as "help U.S. companies 
expand into other markets , while also helping foreign companies expand into the U.S." 
To evaluate whether the Petitioner 's proposed endeavor satisfies the national importance requirement 
we look to evidence documenting the "potential prospective impact" of her work. Although the 
Petitioner 's statements reflect her intention to provide valuable accounting , tax, and financial planning 
services for her future U.S. employer and clients, she has not offered sufficient infonnation and 
evidence to demonstrate that the prospective impact of her proposed endeavor rises to the level of 
national importance. In Dhanasar we determined that the petitioner's teaching activities did not rise 
to the level of having national importance because they would not impact her field more broadly. Id. 
at 893. Here, we conclude that the record does not show that the Petitioner's proposed endeavor stands 
to sufficiently extend beyond her employer and clientele to impact the accounting and financial 
services industries, or U.S. economy, more broadly at a level commensurate with national importance. 
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Furthermore, the Petitioner has not demonstrated that the specific endeavor she proposes to undertake 
has significant potential to employ U.S. workers or otherwise offers substantial positive economic 
effects for our nation . Without sufficient information or evidence regarding any projected U.S. economic 
impact or job creation attributable to her future work, the record does not show that benefits to the U.S. 
regional or national economy resulting from the Petitioner's accounting and financial planning services 
would reach the level of "substantial positive economic effects" contemplated by Dhanasar . Id. at 890. 
According ly, the Petitioner has not established that her proposed work meets the first prong of the 
Dhanasar framework. 
Because the documentation in the record does not establish the national importance of her proposed 
endeavor as required by the first prong of the Dhanasar precedent decision, the Petitioner has not 
demonstrated eligibility for a national interest waiver. Further analysis of her eligibility under the second 
and third prongs outlined in Dhanasar , therefore, would serve no meaningful purpose. 
III. CONCLUSION 
As the Petitioner has not met the requisite first prong of the Dhanasar analytical framework , we conclude 
that she has not established she is eligible for or otherwise merits a national interest waiver as a matter 
of discretion. The appeal will be dismissed for the above stated reasons , with each considered as an 
independent and alternate basis for the decision. 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. 
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