dismissed EB-2 NIW Case: Nursing

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
Non-Precedent Decision of the
Administrative Appeals Office 
Date: MAR. 12, 2024 In Re: 30115076 
Appeal of Texas Service Center Decision 
Form 1-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers (National Interest Waiver) 
The Petitioner, a nurse, seeks employment-based second preference (EB-2) immigrant classification 
as a member of the professions holding an advanced degree and an individual of exceptional ability, 
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. § l l 53(b )(2). 
The Director of the Texas Service Center denied the petition, concluding that the record did not 
establish 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. 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 of Christa '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, 1 grant a national interest waiver if 
the petitioner demonstrates that: 
• 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 
1 See also 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Third in an unpublished decision) in concluding that USCIS' decision to grant or deny a national interest waiver to be 
discretionary in nature). 
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. 
In her decision, the Director determined that the Petitioner's proposed endeavor is of substantial merit, 
and we agree. Turning to the national importance of her endeavor, the Director concluded that the 
Petitioner did not establish that her proposed endeavor has national importance. While the record 
demonstrates that the Petitioner is an experienced nurse who provides a valuable benefit to her 
employer(s), co-workers, and patients, we agree with the Director. 
On appeal, the Petitioner asserts that the Director erred in finding that she is not eligible for a national 
interest waiver. The Petitioner relies, in large part, on her over nine years of experience as a nurse to 
establish the national importance of her proposed endeavor. However, the Petitioner's expertise and 
record of success in previous positions are considerations under Dhanasar's second prong, which 
"shifts the focus from the proposed endeavor to the foreign national." Id. at 890. The issue here is 
whether the Petitioner has demonstrated, by a preponderance of the evidence, the national importance 
of her proposed work. 
In addition, the Petitioner discusses the importance of nursing as a profession and her specialization 
in neonatology and pediatrics. However, while this may establish the merit of the endeavor, national 
importance is a separate consideration under the first Dhanasar prong. Id. at 889-90. She must 
demonstrate the national importance of her specific, proposed endeavor of providing specialized 
nursing services rather than the importance of the field of nursing. In Dhanasar, we explained 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 determined that the noncitizen's work as a science teacher had substantial merit but 
did not qualify him under the first prong because the evidence did not show how that work would 
impact the field of science education more broadly. Id. at 893. Similarly, the Petitioner in this matter 
has not established that her endeavor will have an impact that extends beyond her future patients, co­
workers, and employer(s) to the broader field of nursing or healthcare. 
Moreover, the Petitioner states that her endeavor has national importance due to the shortage of nurses 
in the United States but has not provided evidence to demonstrate that her endeavor would 
meaningfully impact the shortage. Further, a nursing shortage in the United States does not render her 
proposed endeavor nationally important under the Dhanasar framework. In fact, such shortages of 
qualified workers are directly addressed by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) through both the 
labor certification process and its designation of professional nurses as a Schedule A occupation. 
20 C.F.R. §§ 656.5, 656.15. See generally 6 USCIS Policy Manual E.7(c), 
https://uscis.gov/policymanual. The Petitioner also states that her proposed endeavor will "ameliorate 
the physician shortage in the United States" because family nurse practitioners "are stepping up to fill 
the void," but she does not substantiate how her specific endeavor would reduce the physician shortage 
at a level commensurate with national importance. 
While the Petitioner also asserts that her proposed endeavor has significant potential to employ U.S. 
workers or otherwise offer substantial positive economic effects for our nation, she does not provide 
evidence regarding the projected U.S. economic impact or job creation directly attributable to her 
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future work. Here, the record does not show benefits to the U.S. regional or national economy 
resulting from her nursing position that would reach the level of "substantial positive economic 
effects" contemplated by Dhanasar. Id. at 890. 
Because the Petitioner has not established the national importance of her proposed endeavor as 
required by the first prong of the Dhanasar precedent decision, she has not demonstrated eligibility 
for a national interest waiver, as a matter of discretion. Since the identified basis for denial is 
dispositive of the Petitioner's appeal, we decline to reach and hereby reserve the Petitioner's appellate 
arguments regarding the two remaining Dhanasar prongs. See INS v. Bagamasbad, 429 U.S. 24, 25 
(1976). We also reserve a determination on the Petitioner's eligibility for the underlying immigrant 
classification. 2 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. 
2 The Petitioner initially claimed to qualify for EB-2 classification as a member of the professions holding an advanced 
degree and an individual of exceptional ability. However, the Director did not make a finding as to whether the Petitioner 
qualifies for the underlying EB-2 classification. On appeal, the Petitioner states that in the Director's request for evidence 
(RFE), she was found "eligible for the sought-after visa classification"; however, we do not find such a statement in the 
RFE. 
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