dismissed EB-2 NIW Case: Tax Preparation

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
MATTER OF S-T-, LLC 
Non-Precedent Decision of the 
Administrative Appeals Office 
DATE: MAY 3, 2018 
APPEAL OF NEBRASKA SERVICE CENTER DECISION 
PETITION: FORM I-140, IMMIGRANT PETITION FOR ALIEN WORKER 
The Petitioner, a tax preparation service, seeks second preference immigrant classification for the 
Beneficiary, its owner, as a member of the professions holding an advanced degree, and also seeks a 
national interest waiver of the job otTer 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). Atier 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 otTer and thus of a labor certification. Maller ofDhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. 884 
(AAO 2016). 
The Director of the Nebraska Service Center denied the Form 1-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien 
Worker, 11nding that the Beneficiary did not qualify for classification as a member of the professions 
holding an advanced degree or the equivalent, and that the Petitioner 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. 
On appeal, the Petitioner submits additional documentation and asserts that the Beneficiary is 
eligible tor a national interest waiver. It does not address the Director's finding that it did not 
provide sufticient evidence that the Beneficiary qualities for the underlying classification. 
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 
tor 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. 
Jl4aller of S-T-. LLC 
Section 203(b) of the Act sets out this sequential tramework: 
(2) Aliens who arc members of the professions holding advanced degrees or aliens of 
exceptional ability.-
(A) In general. -Visas shall 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 arc sought by an employer in the 
United States. 
(B) Waiver ofjob 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. 
The regulation at 8 C.F.R. § 204.5(k)(2}contains the following relevant definition: 
Advanced degree means any United States academic or professional degree or a 
foreign equivalent degree above that of baccalaureate. A United States baccalaureate 
degree or a foreign equivalent degree followed by at least tive years of progressive 
experience in the specialty shall be considered the equivalent of a master's degree. If 
a doctoral degree is customarily required by the specialty, the alien must have a 
United States doctorate or a foreign equivalent degree. 
In addition, the regulation at 8 C.F.R. s 204.5(k)(3)(i) provides that, in order to show an individual is 
a professional holding an advanced degree: the petition n1ust be accompanied by: 
(A)An of11cial academic record showing that the alien has an United States advanced 
degree or a foreign equivalent degree; or 
(B) An official academic record showing that the alien has a United States 
baccalaureate degree or a foreign equivalent degree, and evidence in the form of 
letters fron~ current or former employer(s) showing that the alien has at least five 
years of progressive post-baccalaureate experience in the specialty. 
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Malfer <~/S-T-. LLC. 
While neither the statute nor the pertinent regulations detine the term "national interest," we recently 
set forth a new framework for adjudicatin g national interest waiver petitions. See Dhanasar, 26 I&N 
Dec. 884.
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II. ANALYSIS 
A. Eligibility for the Underlying Visa Classitication 
As noted above, the regulation at 8 C.F.R. § 204.5(k)(3)( i) s tates that, to demonstrate that the 
Beneficiary is a professional holding an advanced degree, the petition must be accompan ied by 
either an official academic record showing that she holds an advanced degree or a foreign equivalent 
degree, or an official academic record showing that she holds a United States baccal.aureate degree 
or a foreign degree equivalent and evidence in the form of letters from current or former employers 
showing that she has at least fi ve years of progressive post-baccalaureate experience in the 
specialty. 2 
Here, the record includes a copy of the Beneficiary's bachelor of arts degree in French language and 
literature tl·om Universit y in South Korea.3 The record, however, does not contain an 
academic credentials evaluation to establish her foreign degree's equivalency to a United States 
degree as required under 8 C.F.R. § 204.5(k)(3)(i)(A). Thus, the Petitioner has not documented that 
the Beneficiary holds the foreign equivalent of a degree above that of baccalaureate. Alternatively, 
it has not shown that her degree is the foreign equivalent of a United States baccalaureate degree nor 
has it established, through l etters from current or former employers, that t he Beneticiary has 
progressive post-baccalaureate experience in her specialty equivalent to an advanced degree under 
the regulation at 8 C.F.R. ~ 204.5(k)(3)(i)(B). Accordingly, the Director determined that the 
Beneficiary did not qualify tor classificatio n as a member of the profession s holding an advanced 
degree and we atlinn that tinding. On appeal, the Petitioner does not address the Director's tinding nor 
does it provide additional evidence of the Beneficiary's eligibility for the classification sought. Thus, 
the appeal will be dismissed on this ba?is. 
B. National Inter est Waiver 
The remaining issue is whether the Petitioner has established that a waiver of the requirement of a job 
offer, and thus a labor certi lication, is in the national interest. As previously outlined, in order to 
qualify lor a national interest waiver, the Petitioner must tirst show that the Beneficiary qualities for 
1 
In announcing this new framework. we vacated our prior precedent decision, Ma((er of New >'ork State Department of 
Transpor/a tion , 22 f&N Dec. 215 (Act. Assoc. Comm·r I 998) (NYSDOT). 
" The Petitioner does not claim that the Beneficiary qualifies as an individual of exceptional ability, thus, we will limit 
?Uf analysis tO whether she meetS the requirementS as an adv::mced degree professional. 
·' The record also includes transcripts from 1 College in , California indicating that the Beneficiary 
completed some coursework in an Associate's degree in ans and a transcript from College in 
California, reflecting coursework in an Associate's Degree in Arts with a major in graphic design. The record. docs not 
include evidence of a degree from· either school. 
., 
.) 
Maner ofS-7~. LLC. 
classilication under section 203(b)(2)(A) of the Act as either an advanced degree professional or an 
individual of exceptional ability. The Petitioner docs not claim that the Beneliciary meets the 
regulatory criteria for classilication as an individual of exceptional ability and it has not 
demonstrated. that she qualities as an advanced degree professional. As the Petitioner has not 
established the Beneficiary's eligibility for the underlying immigrant classilication, further discussion of 
the national interest waiver serves no meaningful purpose. 
Ill. CONCLUSION 
As the Petitioner has not demonstrated that the Beneficiary qualities for the underlying vrsa 
classification, it has not established eligibility for the immigration benelit sought. 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. 
Cite as Maller of'S-T-. LLC, ID# 1218240 (AAO May 3, 2018) 
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