sustained EB-2 NIW Case: Urology

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
MATTER OF M-M-
APPEAL OF TEXAS SERVICE CENTER DECISION 
Non-Precedent Decision of the 
Administrative Appeals Office 
DATE: NOV. 25,2015 
PETITION: FORM I-140, IMMIGRANT PETITION FOR ALIEN WORKER 
The Petitioner, an associate professor of urology, seeks classification as a member ofthe professions 
holding an advanced degree. See Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act) § 203(b)(2), 8 U.S.C. 
§ 1153(b)(2), The Director, Texas Service Center, denied the petition. The matter is now before us 
on appeal. The appeal will be sustained. 
The Petitioner asserts that an exemption from the requirement of a job offer, and thus of a labor 
certification, is in the national interest of the United States. The Director found that the Petitioner 
qualifies for classification as a member of the professions holding an advanced degree, but that the 
Petitioner has not established that a waiver of a job offer would be in the national interest. On 
appeal, the Petitioner submits a brief. 
I. LAW 
Section 203(b) of the Act states, in pertinent part: 
(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 of Job Offer-
(i) ... the 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. 
(b)(6)
Matter of M-M-
II. ISSUES 
The Petitioner received a Doctor of Medicine degree from 
in Iran. Accordingly , the Director determined that the Petitioner qualifies as a member of the 
professions holding an advanced degree. The sole issue in contention is whether the Petitioner has 
established that a waiver of the job offer requirement, and thus a labor certification, is in the national 
interest. 
Neither the statute nor the pertinent regulations define the term "national interest." Additionally, 
Congress did not provide a specific definition of "in the national interest." Matter of New York State 
Dep 't ofTransp . (NYSDOT), 22 I&N Dec. 215, 217-18 (Act. Assoc. Comm'r 1998), set forth several 
factors which must be considered when evaluating a request for a national interest waiver. First, a 
petitioner must establish that he seeks employment in an area of substantial intrinsic merit. !d. at 217. 
Next, a petitioner must demonstrate that the proposed benefit will be national in scope. !d. Finally, the 
petitioner seeking the waiver must show that he will serve the national interestto a substantially greater 
degree than would an available U.S. worker having 
the same minimum qualifications. !d. at 217-18 .. 
The Petitioner has established that his work as an a~sociate professor of urology is in an area of 
substantial intrinsic merit and that the proposed benefits of his research concerning regeneration of 
the urinary sphincter and kidney would be national in scope. It remains, then, to determine whether 
the Petitioner will benefit the national interest to a greater extent than an available U.S. worker with 
the same minimum qualifications. 
Although the national interest waiver hinges on prospective national benefit, the petitioner must show 
that his past record justifies projections of future benefit to the national interest. !d. at 219. The 
petitioner's subjective assurance that he will, in the future, serve the national interest cannot suffice to 
establish prospective national benefit. The inclusion of the term "prospective" is used here to require 
future contributions by the petitioner, rather than to facilitate the entry of an individual with no 
demonstrable prior achievements, and whose benefit to the national interest would thus be entirely 
speculative. !d. 
Furthermore, eligibility for the waiver must rest with the petitioner's own qualifications rather than 
with the position sought. Assertions regarding the overall importance of a petitioner's area of 
expertise cannot suffice to establish eligibility for a national interest waiver. !d. at 220. At issue is 
whether the petitioner's contributions in the field are of such significance that he merits the special 
benefit of a national interest waiver, a benefit separate and distinct from the visa classification he 
seeks. A petitioner must exhibit a past history of achievement with some degree of influence on the 
field as a whole . !d. at 219, n. 6. In evaluating the petitioner's achievements, original innovation, 
such as demonstrated by a patent, is insufficient by itself. Whether the specific innovation serves the 
national interest must be decided on a case-by-case basis. !d. at 221, n. 7. 
2 
(b)(6)
Matter of M-M-
III. FACTS AND ANALYSIS 
The Petitioner filed the Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker, on May 5, 2014. At the time 
of filing, the Petitioner was working as an Associate Professor of Pediatric Urology at The 
Director determined that the Petitioner's impact and influence on his field did not satisfy the third prong 
of the NYSDOTnational interest analysis. 
The Petitioner seeks to continue his medical research in the urology field. The record includes 
documentation of numerous journal articles that the Petitioner has written or co-written, and 
evidence demonstrating that his published work has been frequently cited. According to a Google 
Scholar citation index provided by the Petitioner, his published articles have garnered 188 citations 
by others in the field. For example, the submitted Google Scholar citation index reflects that the 
Petitioner's articles entitled · and 
were cited to 42 and 36 times, respectively. The Petitioner also included copies of 
the journal articles in which independent medical researchers favorably cite to his work. For 
example, as noted on appeal, one article cites the Petitioner's work with clomiphene citrate as one of 
A substantial number of 
favorable independent citations for an article is an indication that other researchers are familiar with 
this work and may have been influenced by it. 
Furthermore, the Petitioner provided letters of support from 
the 
Chancellor of and 
, Director of 
Chairman of the 
indicated that the Petitioner was a co­
founder of the and was elected as its Editor-in-Chief. In addition, the Petitioner included a 
certificate from the _ in recognition of his 
contributions as a researcher and other official recognition from Iran. The submitted documentation, 
including the frequent citation of the Petitioner's work by independent researchers, is sufficient to 
demonstrate that the Petitioner's work has had a degree of influence on his field. The record 
establishes the significance of this Petitioner's research, as opposed to the general area of research, and 
identifies specific benefits attributable to his work that have influenced the field as a whole. We 
therefore find that the Petitioner's past record of achievement justifies a projection that he will serve 
the national interest to a significantly greater degree than would an available U.S. worker having the 
same minimum qualifications. 
IV. CONCLUSION 
As discussed above, the record demonstrates that the benefit of retaining this petitioner's services 
outweighs the national interest that is inherent in the labor certification process. Therefore, on the basis 
of the evidence submitted, the Petitioner has established that a waiver of the requirement of a job offer, 
and thus of a labor certification, will be in the national interest of the United States. 
3 
Matter of M-M-
In visa petition proceedings, it is the Petitioner's burden to establish eligibility for the immigration 
benefit sought. Section 291 of the Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1361; Matter ofOtiende, 26 I&N Dec. 127, 128 
· (BIA 2013). Here, that burden has been met. 
ORDER: The appeal is sustained. 
Cite as Matter ofM-M-, ID# 14494 (AAO Nov. 25, 2015) 
4