dismissed EB-2 NIW Case: Finance

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
In Re: 23042673 
Appeal of Texas Service Center Decision 
Non-Precedent Decision of the 
Administrative Appeals Office 
Date: JAN. 3, 2023 
Form 1-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker (National Interest Waiver) 
The Petitioner, a finance consultant, seeks employment-based second preference (EB-2) 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 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 qualified 
for classification as a member of the professions holding an advanced degree, but that he had not 
established that a waiver of the required job offer, and thus of the labor certification, would be in the 
national interest. The matter is now before us on appeal. 
The Petitioner bears the burden of proof to demonstrate eligibility by a preponderance of the evidence . 
Matter ofChawathe, 25 I&N Dec. 369, 375-76 (AAO 2010). We review the questions in this matter 
de novo. Matter of Christo 's, Inc., 26 l&N Dec. 537, 537 n.2 (AAO 2015). Upon de novo 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 . Section 203(b )(2)(B)(i) of the Act. Once a 
petitioner demonstrates eligibility as either a member of the professions holding an advanced degree 
or an individual of exceptional ability, they must then establish that they merit a discretionary waiver 
of the job offer requirement "in the national interest." Section 203(b )(2)(B)(i) of the Act. While 
neither the statute nor the pertinent regulations define the term "national interest," Matter of Dhanasar, 
26 I&N Dec. 884, 889 (AAO 2016), provides the framework for adjudicating national interest waiver 
petitions. Dhanasar states that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may, as matter of 
discretion 1, grant a national interest waiver if the petitioner demonstrates that: 
• The proposed endeavor has both substantial merit and national importance; 
1 See also Poursina v. USCIS, 936 F.3d 868 (9th Cir. 2019) (finding USCIS' decision to grant or deny a national interest 
waiver to be discretionary in nature) . 
• The individual is well-positioned to advance their proposed endeavor; and 
• On balance, waiving the job offer requirement would benefit the United States. 
II. ANALYSIS 
The Director found 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 conclude that the Petitioner has not sufficiently demonstrated the national 
importance of his proposed endeavor under the first prong of the Dhanasar analytical framework. 
With respect to his proposed endeavor, the Petitioner indicated that he intends "to provide accounting and 
financial services for U.S. companies and individuals" through his company, I I 
I 2 He stated that he plans to offer services in tax preparation, tax planning, accounting, 
strategic business planning, and incorporation. The Petitioner submitted the business plan for 
I I This business plan includes industry and market analyses, information about 
his company and its services, financial forecasts and projections, marketing strategies, a discussion of 
the Petitioner's work experience, and a personnel plan. Regarding future staffing, the Petitioner's 
business plan anticipates that the company "will start with three part-time counters in early 2022 and 
grow to three the following year. ... [W]e will reach the end of the fifth year with 5 foll-time employees." 
The Petitioner did not elaborate on these projections or provide evidence supporting the need for these 
additional employees. In addition, while his plan offers sales projections of $282,000 in year one, 
$338,400 in year two, $406,080 in year three, $487,296 in year four, and $584,755 in year five, he did 
not adequately explain how these sales forecasts were calculated. 
The record includes information about the COVID pandemic's effect on financial advice businesses, 
the value of proper tax planning for businesses, the U.S. financial services industry, STEM careers in 
in the financial and accounting fields, and unemployment rates for those with bachelor's degrees and 
those in the financial industry. In addition, the Petitioner provided articles discussing tax planning as 
a part of a company's risk management strategy, the benefit of accounting in the public sector, federal 
STEM education initiatives, roles and value of accounting in business, and slowed hiring among small 
businesses. He also submitted information about U.S. relations with Brazil, the job outlook for 
financial managers, a talent shortage for business-minded professionals, the COVID pandemic's effect 
on the client-advisor relationship, strategies for improving STEM education, and U.S. monetary 
policy. The record therefore supports the Director's determination that the Petitioner's proposed 
endeavor has substantial merit. 
Furthermore, the Petitioner provided recommendation letters from former employers and clients who 
discuss his accounting skills, knowledge, and financial activities. In addition, he presented letters from 
two small business in South Florida I andl reflecting 
interest in his company's financial consulting services. 3 The Petitioner's skills, knowledge, and prior 
work in his field, as well as interest from potential customers, relate to the second prong of the 
2 The record contains documentation relating to the Petitioner's formation of this company, including its "Articles of 
Incorporation" (Florida) and its Internal Revenue Service Employer Identification Number. 
3 The Petitioner's evidence also includes corporate filing records for seven South Florida companies for which he claims 
to have provided consulting services. 
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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 he proposes to undertake has national 
importance under Dhanasar's first prong. The Petitioner also submitted a "Written Advisory 
Opinion" from Dr. W-W-, an accounting professor atl I university, in support of his 
national interest waiver. Dr. W-W- contends that the Petitioner's proposed work is of national 
importance due to the roles of a financial consultant, the economic value of financial consultants, the 
effect of COVID-19 on the finance industry, the societal impact of the finance industry, and U.S. 
Government legislature pertaining to the finance industry. The issue here, however, 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." Id. at 889. The letters 
from Dr. W-W- and the Petitioner's employers and clients do not contain sufficient information and 
explanation, nor does the record include adequate corroborating evidence, to show that his specific 
proposed work as an operator of a financial consulting company offers broader implications in the 
fields of finance or accounting that rise to the level of national importance. 
In the decision denying the petition, the Director determined that the Petitioner had not established the 
national importance of his proposed endeavor. The Director stated that the Petitioner had not 
demonstrated that his undertaking "stands to sufficiently extend beyond his own company and its clients 
to impact the industry or field more broadly." The Director also indicated that the Petitioner had "not 
shown that benefits to the regional or national economy resulting from his proposed endeavor would 
reach the level of 'substantial positive economic effects."' 
In his appeal brief, the Petitioner points to the aforementioned opinion letter from Dr. W-W- asserting 
that "the U.S. Accounting and corporate finance industry has experienced an accountant shortage as a 
result of the COVID-19 pandemic." We are not persuaded by Dr. W-W-'s claim that the Petitioner's 
proposed endeavor has national importance due to the shortage of professionals in his industry. Here, 
the Petitioner has not established that his proposed endeavor stands to impact or significantly reduce 
the claimed national shortage. Further, shortages of qualified workers are directly addressed by the 
U.S. Department of Labor through the labor certification process. 
Dr. W-W- also contends that the Petitioner's proposed endeavor will "open new opportunities for 
employment for U.S. citizens and encourage innovation and export. Thus, these mechanisms drive the 
growth of an economy, and in this case, the U.S. economy." Dr. W-W- further states that the Petitioner's 
"company will usher the arrival of foreign investors whose operations can potentially trigger and 
encourage the forward progression of the U.S. economy." In addition, Dr. W-W- argues that the 
Petitioner's undertaking stands to "contribute to the U.S. national income and national budget" and "will 
add to the growth of the U.S. economy" through attracting foreign direct investment. Moreover, he 
claims that the Petitioner's proposed accounting and financial consulting work "plays a key role in 
evaluating and disclosing climate risk and sustainability reporting and therefore adds to how important 
the financial consulting position plays in response to climate change." Furthermore, Dr. W-W- asserts 
that the Petitioner's proposed endeavor will help increase government tax revenue, thus generating 
funding for social programs such as welfare and food stamps. 
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 
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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. 
To evaluate whether the Petitioner 's proposed endeavor satisfies the national importance requirement 
we look to evidence documenting the "potential prospective impact" of his work. While the 
Petitioner 's statements reflect his intention to provide valuable financial and accounting services for 
his company's clients, he has not offered sufficient information and evidence to demonstrate that the 
prospective impact of his 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 his field more broadly. Id. at 893. Here, we conclude the 
Petitioner has not shown that his proposed endeavor stands to sufficiently extend beyond his company 
and its clientele to impact the financial consulting field, the a ccounting and financial services 
industries, or the U.S. economy more broadly at a level commensurate with national importance. 
Furthermore , the Petitioner has not demonstrated that the specific endeavor he proposes to undertake 
has significant potential to employ U.S. workers or otherwise offers substantial positive economic 
effects for our nation. Specifically, he has not shown that his company's future staffing levels and 
business activity stand to provide substantial economic benefits in Florida or the United States. While 
the sales forecast for I indicates that the Petitioner's company has growth 
potential, it does not demonstrate that the benefits to the regional or national economy resulting from his 
undertaking would reach the level of"substantial positive economic effects" contemplated by Dhanasar. 
Id. at 890. In addition, although the Petitioner asserts that his company "provides employment to the 
U.S. public," he has not offered sufficient evidence that the area where his company operates is 
economically depressed, that he would employ a significant population of workers in that area, or that 
his endeavor would offer the region or its population a substantial economic benefit through 
employment levels, tax revenue, or business activity. Accordingly , the Petitioner 's proposed work 
does not meet the first prong of the Dhanasar framework . 
Because the documentation in the record does not establish the national importance of his 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 his 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 he has not established he 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. 
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ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. 
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