dismissed EB-2 NIW Case: Financial Consulting

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
Non-Precedent Decision of the
Administrative Appeals Office 
Date : JUN. 26, 2023 In Re: 27366893 
Appeal of Texas Service Center Decision 
Form 1-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers (National Interest Waiver) 
The Petitioner seeks classification as a member of the professions holding an advanced degree. 
Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act) section 203(b )(2), 8 U.S.C. § 1153(b )(2). The Petitioner 
also seeks a national interest waiver of the job offer requirement that is attached to this EB-2 immigrant 
classification. Section 203(b )(2)(i) of the Act. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) 
may grant this discretionary waiver of the required job offer, and thus of a labor certification, when it 
is in the national interest to do so. 
The Director of the Texas Service Center denied the petition, concluding that although the Petitioner 
qualified as an advanced degree professional, he had not established that a waiver of the required job 
offer, and thus of the labor certification, would be in the national interest. 1 The matter is now before 
us on appeal. 8 C.F.R. § 103.3. 
The Petitioner bears the burden of proof to demonstrate eligibility by a preponderance of the evidence. 
Matter ofChawathe, 25 l&N Dec. 369, 375-76 (AAO 2010). We review the questions in this matter 
de novo . Matter ofChristo 's, Inc., 26 I&N Dec. 537,537 n.2 (AAO 2015) . Upon de novo review, we 
will dismiss the appeal. 
If a petitioner demonstrates eligibility for the underlying EB-2 classification, 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 2, grant a national interest waiver if 
the petitioner demonstrates that: 
1 An advanced degree is any United States academic or professional degree or a foreign equivalent degree above that of a 
bachelor 's degree. A United States bachelor's degree or foreign equivalent degree followed by five years of progressive 
experience in the specialty is the equivalent of a master 's degree. 8 C.F.R. § 204.5(k)(2) . 
2 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 proposed endeavor has both substantial merit and national importance; 
• The individual is well-positioned to advance their proposed endeavor; and 
• On balance, waiving the job offer requirement would benefit the United States. 
The first prong of the Dhanasar framework, substantial merit and national importance, focuses on the 
specific endeavor that the individual 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. Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. at 889. 
According to the Petitioner, he intends to provide financial consulting and advisory services to aviation 
companies and small and medium sized enterprises "to improve their operational and financial 
performance, create and maintain metrics to support decision-making, and system analysis, to assess 
specific issues, as well as action plans and process mapping." The Petitioner further stated that his 
company will provide accounting, assurance, audits, bookkeeping, business planning, control systems, 
financial advisory, and tax consulting services. Upon review of the record, we conclude that the 
Petitioner has established the substantial merit portion of the first Dhanasar prong. However, the 
record does not establish the national importance of his proposed endeavor as required. 
On appeal, the Petitioner asserts that he provided sufficient evidence to show the national importance 
of his proposed endeavor, specifically a business plan, personal statements, letters ofrecommendation, 
and industry reports and articles. Through articles and reports, the Petitioner emphasized the 
importance of accounting in the finance industry, and the shortage of accounting professionals with 
his background in the United States. 3 We agree that the fields of accounting and finance are important, 
and that success in the fields may lead to greater career opportunities and economic advantages. 
However, in determining national importance, the relevant question is not the importance of the 
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. In Dhanasar, we 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. While the Petitioner proposes to work in an important industry or field, this is not necessarily 
sufficient to establish the national importance of the specific proposed endeavor. Further, the articles 
and reports do not discuss any particulars of the Petitioner's proposed endeavor or its prospective 
impact rising to the level of national importance. 
In Dhanasar, we determined 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. Likewise, the 
Petitioner has not established how his independent financial consulting and advisory firm stands to 
sufficiently extend beyond his clients to impact the fields of accounting and finance more broadly at 
a level commensurate with national importance. 
3 A shortage of accounting professionals in the United States does not render his proposed endeavor nationally important 
under the Dhanasar framework. In fact, such sh01tages of qualified workers are directly addressed by the U.S. Department 
of Labor through the labor certification process. 
2 
We reviewed the Petitioner's business plan, including its revenue and employment projections. The 
Petitioner did not sufficiently describe the origin or basis for these projections and, even if he had, 
they would not establish the national importance of the proposed endeavor.4 As we explained in 
Dhanasar, "[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. Here, 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. Without sufficient information 
or evidence regarding any projected U.S. economic impact or job creation attributable to his future work, 
the record does not show that benefits to the U.S. regional or national economy resulting from the 
Petitioner's proposed endeavor would reach the level of "substantial positive economic effects" 
contemplated by Dhanasar. Id. 
We also reviewed the Petitioner's statements and letters of recommendation from his professional 
acquaintances. The authors praise the Petitioner's abilities in the accounting and finance fields, and 
the personal attributes that make him an asset to the workplace . While the letters evidence the high 
regard the Petitioner's professional acquaintances have for him and his work, none of the letters offers 
persuasive detail concerning the impact of his proposed endeavor or how such impact would extend 
beyond his business' clientele. Furthermore, his personal statements emphasize his credentials and 
extensive work history. However, the Petitioner's knowledge, skills, education, and experience are 
considerations under Dhanasar's second prong, which "shifts the focus from the proposed endeavor 
to the foreign national." Id. at 890. The issue under the first prong is whether the Petitioner has 
demonstrated the national importance of his proposed work and he has not. 
Because the Petitioner has not established eligibility under the first prong of the Dhanasar test, we 
need not address his eligibility under the remaining prongs, and we hereby reserve them. 5 The burden 
of proof is on the Petitioner to establish that he meets each eligibility requirement of the benefit sought 
by a preponderance of the evidence. Matter of Chawathe, 25 I&N Dec. at 375-376. The Petitioner 
has not done so here and, therefore, we conclude that he has not established eligibility for a national 
interest waiver as a matter of discretion. 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. 
4 The Petitioner must support his assertions with relevant , probative , and credible evidence . See Matter of Chawathe, 25 
I&N Dec. at 376 (AAO 2010). 
5 See INS v. Bagamasbad , 429 U.S. 24, 25 (1976) ("courts and agencies are not required to make findings on issues the 
decision of which is unnecessary to the results they reach"); see also Matter ofL-A-C-, 26 l&N Dec. 516, 526 n. 7 (BIA 
2015) ( declining to reach alternative issues on appeal where an applicant is otherwise ineligible) . 
3