sustained EB-2 NIW Case: Medicine

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
In Re: 7466448 
Appeal of Nebraska Service Center Decision 
Non-Precedent Decision of the 
Administrative Appeals Office 
Date: MAY 27, 2020 
Form 1-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker (Advanced Degree, Exceptional Ability, National 
Interest Waiver) 
The Petitioner, a physician and researcher, 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. § 1153(b )(2). 
The Director of the Nebraska Service Center denied the petition, concluding that the record did not 
establish, as required, that a waiver of the job offer requirement, and thus of a labor certification, 
would be in the national interest. 
In these proceedings , it is the Petitioner's burden to establish eligibility for the requested benefit. 
Section 291 of the Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1361. Upon de nova review, we will sustain 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. 
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 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 are 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. 
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, grant a national interest waiver if the petitioner demonstrates: ( 1) 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. 
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. 
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 of a labor certification. 2 
1 In announcing this new framework, we vacated our prior precedent decision, Matter of New York State Department of 
Transportation, 22 l&N Dec. 215 (Act. Assoc. Comm'r 1998) (NYSDOT). 
2 See Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. at 888-91, for elaboration on these three prongs. 
2 
II. ANALYSIS 
As acknowledged in the Director's decision, the record demonstrates that the Petitioner qualifies as a 
member of the professions 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. 
At the time of filing, the Petitioner was a first-year medical resident atl I university School of 
Medicine. The record indicates that his duties involved patient care, research, and teaching and 
supervising students. He proposes to complete his medical training and pursue a position as a 
cardiology faculty member, continuing his research and clinical work specializing in mechanical 
circulatory support. For the reasons discussed below, we find that the Petitioner has established 
eligibility for a national interest waiver under the Dhanasar framework. 
A. Substantial Merit and National Importance of the Proposed Endeavor 
The Petitioner indicated that he intends to continue his research in the area of mechanical circulatory 
support. Specifically, he intends to extend his current research to assess and mitigate complications 
resulting from I I device insertion, and to study the use of I I 
I Ito provide circulatory and respiratory support. He also stated in his response to 
the Director's request for evidence (RFE) that his intention is to be employed in a position "with a 
strong focus on research" and "not exclusively involved in daily management of individual patients." 
In his decision, the Director determined that the Petitioner's proposed endeavor has substantial merit. 
Based upon the evidence in the record concerning the number of deaths related to cardiovascular 
disease and the economic burden of the associated medical treatment, we agree that the Petitioner's 
work in the treatment of patients and his research in the area of mechanical circulation support has 
substantial merit. 
To satisfy the national importance requirement, the Petitioner must demonstrate the "potential 
prospective impact" of his work. As evidence that the benefit of his proposed work has broader 
implications in the field of medicine, and more specifically cardiology, he submitted reference letters 
describing how his research on mechanical assistance devices will have an effect on both patient 
outcomes and in developing guidance for their implementation. In addition, the Petitioner has 
submitted documentation of his research and its publication which indicates that the benefit of his 
proposed research has broader implications, as the results are disseminated to other experts in his field 
through medical journals and conferences. Because the Petitioner has demonstrated both the 
substantial merit and national importance of his proposed research in cardiology, we find that the 
record supports the Director's determination that he meets the first prong oftheDhanasar framework. 4 
3 The Petitioner submitted copies of his Doctor of Medicine and Master of Science diplomas, both earned at ~I--~ 
University in 2018. 
4 The Petitioner acknowledges that at least a portion of his proposed endeavor will involve the care and treatment of patients 
and educational duties. While these endeavors have substantial merit, the record does not establish that his clinical and 
instructional work would impact the cardiology field and healthcare industry more broadly, as opposed to being limited to 
3 
B. Well Positioned to Advance the Proposed Endeavor 
The second prong shifts the focus from the proposed endeavor to the Petitioner's qualifications. The 
Petitioner submitted documentation of his academic credentials, articles published in medical journals, 
and evidence that others in his field have recognized and built upon his work. In addition, as noted 
above, he submitted several reference letters describing his research work and its impact on the field. 
In his decision, the Director found that because the Petitioner indicated on Forms I-140 and ETA-9089 
that his proposed employment is as a cardiologist, and because he acknowledged in his statements 
submitted initially and in response to the Director's RFE that his proposed endeavor includes both 
cardiology research and clinical patient care, the fact that he did not possess a medical license at the 
time of filing renders him insufficiently positioned to advance his proposed endeavor. On appeal, the 
Petitioner emphasizes his desire to continue to conduct research in his field, which does not require a 
medical license. Because we have already determined that to the extent that his proposed endeavor 
does involve teaching or patient care, these activities do not have a broader impact and so are not of 
national importance, we need not determine whether the Petitioner has established that he is well 
positioned to advance those activities. Our analysis under this prong will focus solely on whether he 
is well positioned to advance his proposed cardiology research. 5 
Several expert references identify specific examples of how the Petitioner's work has already impacted 
the field of medicine. 6 I I professor atl I university College of Physicians 
and Surgeons, states that he has collaborated extensively with the Petitioner. He focuses on a particular 
research project of the Petitioner's in which he investigated the I O I effect of heart valve 
procedures duringl I implantation, noting that the results indicate that concurrent valve repair 
reduces complications. The record includes a review of the resulting article was posted on the MCS 
Journal Watch page of the website of the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation, 
which~----~ states "shows appreciation from fellow leaders in cardiology." In addition, the 
web page indicates that one or two of the "best articles from peer reviewed journals" are selected each 
month to be reviewed. 
Another reference letter was written by.__ _______ ___. chief of congenital cardiac surgery at 
I I Children's Hospital. He writes about the Petitioner's research on I I and its role in 
managing acute cardiogenic shock, which he indicates "demonstrates the effectiveness ofl lover 
various traditional methods." I I notes that "a position statement from the European Society of 
Cardiology by their Heart Failure Association utilized [the Petitioner's] research in the establishment 
the patients he serves and his medical trainees. Accordingly, without sufficient documentary evidence of their broader 
impact, the Petitioner's clinical work as a cardiologist and activities as a medical instructor do not meet the "national 
importance" element of the first prong of the Dhanasar framework. Similarly, 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. 
5 We note that the Petitioner's current supervisor submitted a letter stating that for the term of his residency, "he will 
continue to dedicate a substantial portion of his time" to research endeavors. In addition, the Petitioner's statement in 
response to the Director's RFE makes clear that he will seek positions "with a strong focus on research." 
6 All of the reference letters have been thoroughly reviewed, including those not specifically mentioned in this decision. 
4 
of new clinical guidelines." The record includes a copy of the statement in which this organization 
described new diagnostic and treatment options for heart failure patients. 
In additionJ I ofl I University Medical Center corroborates the Petitioner's 
contribution to T article be co-authored which was published in The Journal o(Heart and Lung 
Transplantation. I describes this research on the effect ofl I assist devices, 
and notes that it has been cited a total of37 times, 7 "testifying to its worth in the scientific community." 
He also indicates that despite not being the first author on this paper, the Petitioner's contributions 
were "equal to my own," and that the Petitioner "was just as influential as I was in terms of the overall 
effort made and the final outcome." 
The Petitioner's education and expertise in his field, record of success in publishing his research 
focusing onl !circulatory support devices, documented impact upon other researchers as 
well as practicing cardiologists, and detailed plan for his proposed endeavor which is supported by 
documentary evidence position him well to advance his proposed endeavor. Accordingly, the record 
demonstrates establishes that the Petitioner satisfies the second prong of the Dhanasar framework. 
C. Balancing Factors to Determine Waiver's Benefit to the United States 
As explained above, 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. Here, the Petitioner claims that he is eligible for a waiver because as a medical resident, 
which is an inherently temporary position, a labor certification would be impractical. Specifically, he 
refers to the decision of the United States Department of Labor Board of Alien Labor Certifications 
(BALCA) in Matters of Albert Einstein Medical Center and Abington Memorial Hospital (BALCA, 
November 21, 2011). Although the Petitioner does not explain why it would be impractical to obtain 
a labor certification from an employer once he has completed his residency, we find that, given the 
Petitioner's multiple advanced degrees and track record of success as a researcher, the United States 
would benefit from his contributions, regardless of the availability of qualified domestic workers. 
III. CONCLUSION 
The Petitioner has established his eligibility as a professional holding an advanced degree, and has 
met the three prongs of the Dhanasar analytical framework. We therefore find that he has established 
eligibility for and otherwise merits a national interest waiver as a matter of discretion. 
ORDER: The appeal is sustained. 
7 We note that the Petitioner's Google Scholar profile page, 
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=l~----------------.L indicates that as of May 4, 2020, this paper 
has been cited on 59 occasions. 
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