dismissed EB-2 NIW Case: Marketing

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
Non-Precedent Decision of the
Administrative Appeals Office 
Date: JUL. 18, 2024 In Re: 31929428 
Appeal of Nebraska Service Center Decision 
Form 1-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers (National Interest Waiver) 
The Petitioner, a marketing specialist, 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 classification. See Immigration and Nationality 
Act (the Act) section 203(b)(2), 8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(2). 
The Director of the Nebraska Service Center denied the Petitioner's Form 1-140, Immigrant Petition 
for Alien Workers, concluding that the record did not establish that the Petitioner was eligible for and 
merited a national interest waiver as a matter of discretion. The matter is now before us on appeal 
pursuant to 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 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 qualify for the underlying EB-2 visa classification, a petitioner must establish they are an advanced 
degree professional or an individual of exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business. Section 
203(b )(2)(A) of the Act. If a petitioner establishes eligibility for the underlying EB-2 classification, 
they must then demonstrate 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 Flores v. Garland, 72 F.4th 85, 88 (5th Cir. 2023) (joining the Ninth, Eleventh, and D.C. Circuit Courts (and Third 
in an unpublished decision) in concluding that USCIS' decision to grant or deny a national interest waiver is discretionary 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. 
Id. 
III. NATIONAL INTEREST WAIVER 
The Director concluded that the Petitioner qualifies as a member of the professions holding an 
advanced degree as is required for the underlying EB-2 classification. 2 Accordingly, the remaining 
issue to be determined on appeal is whether the Petitioner has established under the Dhanasar 
framework that a waiver of the requirement of a job offer, and thus a labor certification, would be in 
the national interest. 
The first prong under the Dhanasar framework, relating to substantial merit and national importance, 
focuses on the specific endeavor that the individual proposes to undertake. Matter ofDhanasar, 26 
I&N Dec. at 889. The endeavor's merit may be demonstrated in a range of areas such as business, 
entrepreneurialism, science, technology, culture, health, or education. Id. In determining whether the 
proposed endeavor has national importance, we consider its potential prospective impact. Id. 
Initially, the Petitioner provided a personal statement wherein she stated that her proposed endeavor 
is to work as a marketing specialist in the areas of marketing, communication, user experience, and 
trade marketing. With regard to marketing, she claimed she will plan, implement, and monitor a 
company's marketing strategy to increase brand awareness, improve marketing efforts, and increase 
sales. As for communication, she stated she will play a vital role in developing effective strategies 
and delivering impactful messages to various stakeholders which in tum provides significant benefits 
to an organization. In the area of user experience, she claimed she will create exceptional experiences 
for customers and users that will also provide significant benefits to an organization. Finally, 
regarding trade marketing, she claimed she will collaborate with consumer-goods industries to develop 
promotional campaigns. She asserted that large companies already have marketing professionals that 
are qualified and well-structured and therefore she will work with small and medium-sized companies 
to impact their profitability, customer portfolio, and business growth. She added that she also aims to 
improve generally the qualifications of marketing professionals in the United States through training, 
mentoring, and motivation. 
The Petitioner also submitted an expert opinion letter stating that the Petitioner's proposed endeavor 
involves providing innovative marketing solutions and segmented marketing techniques to U.S. 
companies as a marketing specialist. The letter further adds that the Petitioner will provide marketing 
services for U.S. companies, ultimately generating revenue, increasing productivity and profitability, 
and creating employment opportunities. 
In response to a request for evidence, the Petitioner provided a professional plan wherein she stated 
her proposed endeavor was to work as a marketing specialist in product marketing, marketing and 
2 Because the Director determined the Petitioner is eligible for classification as a member of the professions possessing an 
advanced degree, the decision does not evaluate the Petitioner's alternative claim that she also qualifies for EB-2 
classification as an individual of exceptional ability. 
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customer experience, and lecturing and mentoring, focusing initially on the telecommunications and 
information technology industries. She describes the marketing strategies and services she intends to 
implement as a marketing specialist, including developing and implementing marketing strategies, 
establishing innovation laboratories and projects, identifying strategic partnerships, and lecturing and 
mentoring students and marketing professionals. She also specifically proposes to develop 
connectivity solutions in the medical field and study strategies and products that benefit low-income 
individuals or those in hard-to-reach areas for medical services, thereby democratizing access to 
primary healthcare for the low-income populations in urban and rural areas. Overall, she describes 
that the proposed endeavor aims to "promote economic growth and job creation within the company 
where [she] will operate .... " 
The Director acknowledged that the Petitioner's proposed endeavor had substantial merit. We agree. 
However, the Director concluded that the Petitioner did not submit sufficient evidence to establish that 
the proposed endeavor is of national importance. The Director acknowledged the Petitioner's passion 
for the marketing field and her role as a marketing specialist but concluded that the evidence did not 
establish that her specific goals and methodologies would impact the marketing industry or U.S. 
economy at a level commensurate with national importance. After considering the evidence, we agree 
that the Petitioner has not established her proposed endeavor is of national importance. 
To evaluate whether the Petitioner's proposed endeavor satisfies the national importance requirement, 
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." 
See id. at 889. In Dhanasar, we further stated that we consider the proposed endeavor's "potential 
prospective impact," and "look for broader implications" noting that "[ a ]n undertaking may have 
national importance for example, because it has national or even global implications within a particular 
field." Id. Further, "[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. 
While we acknowledge the Petitioner's education and experience in the field of marketing and the 
overall impact marketing and healthcare have on the economy of the United States, as noted above, 
our focus is on the specific endeavor that the Petitioner proposes to undertake rather than the 
importance of the industry or profession in which the individual will work. See id. Here, the Petitioner 
has not offered sufficient information and evidence to establish the services she intends to provide as 
a marketing specialist would extend beyond the specific company or organization she is employed by. 
Furthermore, while the Petitioner intends to implement certain marketing methodologies to develop 
marketing strategies, and otherwise generally proposes to establish innovation laboratories, identify 
strategic partnerships, and offer lecturing and mentoring, she has not sufficiently explained or 
demonstrated how these undertakings offer original innovations to advance, or otherwise have broader 
implications in, the field of marketing or are at a level that would have national implications in the 
marketing field. We note, for instance, that in an expert opinion letter written by a professor of 
marketing, the expert claims the Petitioner will "[i]mplement innovative marketing solutions for 
United States companies," and identifies the methodology that the Petitioner claims she developed. 
However, beyond naming the methodology, the expert speaks primarily about the importance of 
marketing in general and does not discuss how the methodology is or has been innovative nor does 
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she provide any specific information on whether the methodology has been adopted academically or 
to what degree, if any, it has been incorporated into or contributed to the marketing field. Similarly, 
a reference letter provided by the Petitioner suggests the writer has applied the techniques from the 
Petitioner's book at their agency and that "[i]t is clear that the work developed by [the Petitioner] has 
gained national prominence and recognition." However, the statement lacks sufficient corroborative 
detail and probative weight to establish the methodology has broader implications in the field of 
marketing. 
Finally, the Petitioner claims that her proposed endeavor would impact social welfare and job creation, 
primarily through innovation laboratories, collaborations with startup and small to medium-sized 
enterprises, and connectivity solutions in the medical field. However, beyond these generalized 
assertions, the record lacks sufficient evidence to substantiate the overall prospective impact of these 
undertakings and therefore is insufficient to establish her proposed endeavor as a marketing specialist 
has significant potential to employ U.S. workers or has other substantial positive economic effects. 
Id. Accordingly, we find the Petitioner has not established that her proposed endeavor is nationally 
important. 
III. CONCLUSION 
The Petitioner has not met the requisite first prong of the Dhanasar analytical framework, requiring 
that she demonstrate her proposed endeavor is nationally important. We therefore conclude that she 
has not established she is eligible for or otherwise merits a national interest waiver as a matter of 
discretion. The Director also concluded that the Petitioner did not establish she was well positioned 
to advance her proposed endeavor, or that on balance it would not be beneficial to the United States 
to waive the requirements of a job offer and thus of a labor certification. While the Petitioner also 
contests these conclusions on appeal, because our determination that the Petitioner's proposed 
endeavor is not nationally important is dispositive of her appeal, we decline to reach and hereby 
reserve the appellate arguments on these issues. 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 I&N Dec. 516,526 n.7 (BIA 2015) (declining 
to reach alternative issues on appeal where an applicant is otherwise ineligible). 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. 
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