dismissed EB-2 NIW Case: Mathematics Education

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
MATTER OF D-T-E-
APPEAL OF TEXAS SERVICE CENTER DECISION 
Non-Precedent Decision of the 
Administrative Appeals Office 
DATE: NOV. 27, 2018 
PETITION: FORM 1-140, IMMIGRANT PETITION FOR ALIEN WORKER 
The Petitioner, a mathematics teacher, 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 EB-2 classification. See Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act) 
section 203(b)(2), 8 U.S.C. § l 153(b)(2). After a petitioner has established eligibility for EB-2 
classification, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may, as matter of discretion, 
grant a national interest waiver if the petitioner demonstrates: (I) 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. Matter of 
Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. 884 {AAO 20 I 6). 
The Director of the Texas Service Center denied the Form 1-140, [mmigrant Petition for Alien 
Worker, finding 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. 
On appeal, the Petitioner submits additional documentation and a brief, arguing that he is eligible for 
a national interest waiver. In September 2018, we issued a request for evidence (RFE) asking the 
Petitioner to provide Form ETA-7508, Statement of Qualifications of Alien, and evidence satisfying 
the three-part framework set forth in Dhanasar. The Petitioner did not respond to our RFE. 
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. 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. 
Maller of D-T-E-
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 shal1 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. 
(8) Waiver of job 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. 884.1 Dhanasar states that after EB-2 eligibility has been established, 
USCIS may, as a matter of discretion, gra·n1 a national interest waiver when the below prongs are 
met. 
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. 
1 In announcing this new framework, we vacated our prior precedent decision, Malter of New York State Department of 
Transportation, 22 l&N Dec. 215 (Act. Assoc. Comm'r 1998) (NYSD07). 
2 
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Maller of D-T-E-
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) 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 ofa labor certification. 2 
II. ANALYSIS 
The Director found that the Petitoner qualifies as a member of the protessions holding an advanced 
degree.3 The sole 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. 
Because Dhanasar was issued before we were ready to adjudicate the appeal, in September 2018 we 
provided an RFE to obtain additional information and evidence regarding the Petitioner's eligibility 
under the new framework. See 8 C.F.R. § 103.2(b)(8) (requests for evidence). In addition, the 
regulation at 8 C.F.R. § 204 .5(k)(4)(ii) states, in pertinent part, "[t]o apply for the [national interest] 
exemption the petitioner must submit Form ET A-7508, Statement of Qualifications of Alien, in 
duplicate." As the record did not include this document , we requested the Petitioner to submit a 
properly signed and fully executed Form ETA-750B. 
A. Appeal Abandoned 
We may summarily dismiss an appeal if the Petitioner does not respond to our RFE. The regulation 
provides, in pertinent part: 
If the petitioner or applicant tails to respond to a request for evidence or to a notice of 
intent to deny by the required date, the benefit request may be summarily denied as 
abandoned, denied based on the record, or denied for both reasons. 
8 C.F.R . § 103.2(b)(l3)(i) . Our RFE specifically informed the Petitioner that "[w]e may dismiss 
your case if we do not receive your response to this RFE within 48 days of the date on the cover 
letter." (Emphasis in original.) To date, more than 48 days have lapsed, and we have yet to receive 
, C 
- See Dhanasur, 26 l&N Dec. at 888-91, for elaboration on these three prongs. 
3 The Petitioner presented an academic credentials evaluation indicating that his Doctor of Science degree in system and 
information science from in Japan is the foreign equivalent of a "'degree of Doctor of Philosophy in 
Computer Science earned at a regionally accredited institution of higher education in the United States." See 8 C.F.R. 
§ 204.5(k)(2) and 8 C.F.R. § 204.5(k)(3)(i)(A). 
3 
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Matter of D-T-E-
a response from the Petitioner on issues we discussed in the RFE. As such, we will summarily 
dismiss the appeal as abandoned pursuant to 8 C.F.R. § 103.2(b)(l3)(i). 
B. Eligibility under the Dhanasar framework 
In the alternative, we find that the Petitioner has not demonstrated that he meets the requirements set 
forth in Dhanasar. The record reflects that, at the time of filing the Form 1-140, the Petitioner was a 
mathematics teacher for at On 
appeal, the Petitioner contends that he is a "highly qualified middle school mathematics teacher." 
With respect to the first prong of the Dhanasar framework, while we find that the Petitioner's proposed 
work teaching mathematics has substantial merit, the evidence is not sufficient to show this endeavor's 
national importance. 
To evaluate whether the Petitioner's work satisfies the national importance requirement we look to 
evidence documenting the "potential prospective impact" of his work. The relevant question is not 
the importance of the field 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 l&N Dec. 
at 889. In Dhanasar, we further noted that "we look for broader implications" of the proposed 
endeavor. Id. 
In the present matter, the Petitioner's evidence does not show that his proposed work has broader 
implications for his field, as opposed to being limited to the students at the school where he intends 
to teach. While the Petitioner asserts that his proposed endeavor serves the "national priority goal of 
closing achievement gap" between advantaged and disadvantaged students, this argument does not 
render the work of an individual teacher nationally important under the Dhanasar framework. In 
general, the value of qualified teachers to U.S. national educational initiatives is collective, and the 
Petitioner has not shown that his proposed work stands to have wider implications in the field of 
mathematics education. 
The Petitioner's documentation is not sufficient to demonstrate that his proposed endeavor is of 
national importance. While we acknowledge the merits of his work to create a positive learning 
environment and improve his students' academic proficiency, the record does not show that the 
Petitioner's teaching activities offer benefits that extend beyond his school to impact the field of 
mathematics education more broadly. 4 
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. 
4 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. 
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Matter of D-T-E-
III. CONCLUSION 
As the Petitioner did not respond to our RFE, he abandoned his appeal. In addition, because he has 
not provided Form ET A-7508 or met the requisite first prong of the Dhanasar analytical framework, 
we find that the Petitioner has not established he is eligible for or otherwise merits a national interest 
waiver as a matter of discretion. 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. 
Cite as Maller of D-T-E-, ID# 1518573 (AAO Nov. 27, 2018) 
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