remanded EB-2 NIW Case: Healthcare Management

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
Non-Precedent Decision of the
Administrative Appeals Office 
Date: OCT. 5, 2023 In Re: 28430428 
Appeal of Texas Service Center Decision 
Form 1-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers (National Interest Waiver) 
The Petitioner, a management consultant in the healthcare field, seeks classification under the 
employment-based, second-preference (EB-2) immigrant visa category and a waiver of the category's 
job-offer requirement. See Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act) section 203(b )(2)(B)(i), 
8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(2)(B)(i). U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has discretion to 
excuse a job offer - and thus the related requirement for certification from the U.S. Department of 
Labor (DOL) - if she demonstrates that a waiver would be "in the national interest." Id. 
The Acting Director of the Texas Service Center denied the petition. The Director found the Petitioner 
qualified for EB-2 classification as a member of the professions holding an "advanced degree" and 
that she met the first prong of waiver requirements by demonstrating that her proposed endeavor has 
"substantial merit" and "national importance." But the Director concluded that the Petitioner did not 
satisfy the remaining two evidentiary prongs and thus does not merit a waiver. On appeal, she 
contends that the Director overlooked evidence that: she is "well-positioned" to advance her proposed 
endeavor; and, in her case, the country would benefit from waiving U.S.-worker protections. 
The Petitioner bears the burden of demonstrating eligibility for the requested benefit by a 
preponderance of the evidence. Matter of Chawathe, 25 I&N Dec. 369, 375-76 (AAO 2010). 
Exercising de novo appellate review, see Matter of Christo 's, Inc., 26 I&N Dec. 537, 537 n.2 (AAO 
2015), we conclude that, contrary to the Director's decision, the Petitioner has not demonstrated the 
"national importance" of her proposed venture. We will therefore withdraw the decision and remand 
the matter for entry of a new decision. 
I. LAW 
To establish eligibility for national interest waivers, petlt10ners must first demonstrate their 
qualifications for the requested EB-2 immigrant visa category, either as advanced degree professionals 
or as noncitizens of "exceptional ability" in the sciences, arts, or business. Section 203(b )(2)(A) of 
the Act. To protect the jobs of U.S. workers, this category generally requires prospective employers 
to seek noncitizens' services and obtain DOL certifications to permanently employ them in the 
country. Section 212(a)(5)(D) of the Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(5)(D). To avoid the job offer/labor 
certification requirements, petitioners must demonstrate that waivers of the U.S.-worker protections 
would be in the national interest. Section 203(b )(2)(B)(i) of the Act. 
Neither the Act nor regulations define the term national interest. So, we established a framework for 
adjudicating these waiver requests. See Matter ofDhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. 884, 889-91 (AAO 2016). 
If otherwise qualified as advanced degree professionals or noncitizens of exceptional ability, 
petitioners may merit waivers of the job-offer/labor certification requirements if they establish that: 
• Their proposed U.S. work has "substantial merit" and "national importance;" 
• They are "well-positioned" to advance their intended endeavors; and 
• On balance, waivers of the job-offer/labor certification requirements would benefit the United 
States. 
Id. 
II. ANALYSIS 
The Petitioner, a Russian native and citizen, earned a medical diploma and founded a medical clinic 
in her home country. In 2003, she changed her career focus. She established a company that 
provides 
management consulting services to small- and medium-sized private healthcare providers in Russian­
speaking countries. Since 2008, she has also served as chief executive officer of a cosmetology clinic 
and, since 2019, has also organized an biannual conference for health and beauty businesses in Eastern 
Europe. 
More recently, the Petitioner formed a U.S. company to provide management consulting services to 
small- and medium-sized private healthcare providers in this country. She states that her proposed 
endeavor will: assure the operational health and competitiveness of a key segment of the U.S. 
healthcare industry; expand access to healthcare; spur use of technological advances; and benefit the 
nation's economy. She says her services are urgently needed, as the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted 
many U.S. healthcare businesses and exposed weaknesses in the country's medical system. 
A. Advanced Degree Professional 
The 
Petitioner submitted evidence that her Russian medical diploma equates to a U.S. medical degree. 
We therefore agree with the Director that she has demonstrated her qualifications for the requested 
immigrant visa category as an advanced degree professional. See 8 C.F.R. § 204.5(k)(2) (defining the 
term "advanced degree" to include "any United States academic or professional degree or a foreign 
equivalent degree above that of baccalaureate"). 
B. Substantial Merit 
A proposed endeavor may have substantial merit if it "has the potential to create a significant economic 
impact" or if it relates to "research, pure science, and the furtherance of human knowledge." Matter 
of Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. at 889. The Petitioner's proposed undertaking could improve U.S. 
healthcare and provide substantial economic benefits. Thus, we also affirm the Director's finding that 
her venture has substantial merit. 
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C. National Importance 
In determining whether a proposed endeavor has national importance, USCIS must focus on the 
particular venture, specifically on its "potential prospective impact." Matter of Dhanasar, 26 I&N 
Dec. at 889. "An undertaking may have national importance, for example, because it has national or 
even global implications within a particular field, such as those resulting from certain improved 
manufacturing processes or medical advances." Id. A nationally important venture may even focus 
on only one geographic area of the United States. Id. at 889-90. "An 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. 
Without analysis, the Director found that the Petitioner demonstrated the national importance of her 
proposed endeavor. We do not defer to the Director's finding, see Matter o_f Christo 's, 26 I&N Dec. 
at 537 n.2, and disagree. 
The record contains letters from other consultants and former clients of the Petitioner in Russia, 
Eastern Europe, and the United States, stating that her proprietary consulting methods have helped 
healthcare businesses grow, even during crises. But the Petitioner has not established that her U.S. 
consulting business would affect the economy or the way healthcare providers do business on a 
national level. She submitted copies of "letters of intent" from four U.S. healthcare providers who 
intend to use her company's services. But the letters indicate that all the businesses are from central 
Florida, where the Petitioner now lives. Moreover, in response to the Director's request for additional 
evidence (RFE), she projected that, within five years, her U.S. business would have 44 clients and 
generate revenue of $4,916,222. With each client serving an average of 3,129 patients per month, she 
estimated that her business would affect about 1,640,100 patients. These projections do not establish 
that the Petitioner's endeavor would nationally affect the healthcare field or the economy. Also, she 
has not provided a detailed plan for her consulting business and has not otherwise shown that it would 
benefit an economically depressed area. 
For the foregoing reasons, the record does not establish the claimed national importance of the 
Petitioner's proposed undertaking. As the Director denied the petition on other grounds, the Petitioner 
does not substantively address the endeavor's national importance on appeal. We will therefore 
remand the matter. 
On remand, the Director should notify the Petitioner of the evidentiary deficiency and afford her a 
reasonable opportunity to respond. If supported by the record, the notice should inform her of any 
other potential denial grounds and provide an opportunity to respond. Upon receipt of a timely 
response, the Director should review the entire record and issue a new decision. 
If unrebutted, our determination that the Petitioner has not established the national importance of her 
proposed venture would result in the petition's denial. But, because she did not receive an adequate 
opportunity to address this issue, we will remand the matter. 1 
1 Because the Director will further review the petition on remand, we need not reach the Petitioner's appellate arguments 
regarding her positioning to advance the endeavor and the purported benefits to the country of waiving U.S. worker 
3 
ORDER: The Director's decision is withdrawn. The matter is remanded for entry of a new 
decision consistent with the foregoing analysis. 
protections. See INS v. Bagamasbad, 429 U.S. 24, 25 (1976) (stating that agencies are not required to make "purely 
advisory findings" on issues that are unnecessary to the ultimate decision); see also Matter ofL-A-C-, 26 I&N Dec. 516, 
526 n. 7 (BIA 2015) ( declining to reach alternate issues on appeal where an applicant did not otherwise qualify for relief). 
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