This is an AAO appeal decision — a case denied once and appealed. It shows how the framework is applied; it is not the filing population.
The Petitioner, an architect, sought classification as a member of the professions holding an advanced degree with a national interest waiver, though the specific proposed endeavor is not described in this decision.
Field: architecture · Read the decision (uscis.gov)
EB-2 threshold — addressed
Director failed to first determine whether Petitioner qualifies for advanced degree classification before conducting Dhanasar analysis; record lacks a credentials evaluation establishing foreign degrees' equivalence to a U.S. bachelor's and master's degree.
How the evidence was treated
- degree · discounted
“the record does not contain an evaluation from an academic credentials evaluation service”
AAO decision text
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Notable
AAO remands because the Director skipped the threshold advanced-degree determination and jumped straight to the Dhanasar NIW analysis, rendering the decision insufficient for review; no prong analysis was reached.
Authorities this decision leans on
From the doctrinal survivor set — 187 authority tests across 47 distinct authorities cleared the differential-lift gates. Only those appear here.
- 8 C.F.R. 204.5(k)(2)
- INA 203(b)(2)
What this case teaches
Analyst reading of the decision text.
The Director skipped the threshold determination of whether Petitioner qualifies as an advanced-degree professional (missing credentials evaluation) before conducting a Dhanasar NIW analysis, making the decision unreviewable.
Ensure the record contains a credentials evaluation establishing foreign degree equivalency before or alongside NIW arguments; USCIS must resolve base classification eligibility first.
vague
mixed
Cases in adjacent profiles
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