NIW Bearings
dismissedAPR172024_01B52032024-04-17 · appeal · Texas Service Center

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 sought to establish a U.S. company providing image consulting, personal styling, and training services, and to train others to become 'image specialists,' projecting revenue growth over five operating years.

Field: fashion consulting / personal image styling · Read the decision (uscis.gov)

EB-2 threshold — not met

AAO withdrew the Director's finding that the Petitioner qualified as an advanced degree professional, concluding her Brazilian bachelor's degree evaluation was inadequately supported and EDGE indicated it might represent only three years of study, less than a U.S. bachelor's equivalent.

Prong 1 — national importancenot established · dispositive

“The record does not establish that those figures would substantially boost the national economy.”
“she has not demonstrated that her particular venture would have economic benefits on a nationally important level.”
“when considering national importance, we must focus on the particular endeavor, not its field.”
“she has not demonstrated that her activities would affect the U.S. fashion field or economy "more broadly."”

AAO decision text

How the evidence was treated

  • business plan · discounted
    “The record does not establish that those figures would substantially boost the national economy.”
    AAO decision text
  • recommendation letter · discounted
    “the record does not sufficiently establish that the method represents an advancement in the fashion field”
    AAO decision text
  • degree · discounted
    “the evaluation does not detail why her foreign degree purportedly equates to a U.S. bachelor's degree”
    AAO decision text
  • resume experience · discounted
    “The record does not demonstrate how many years the Petitioner studied at a Brazilian university to obtain her degree.”
    AAO decision text

Where this case turned

  • Business plan speculative · p1 — projections without a documented basis or steps
  • Economic claims unsupported · p1 — job/revenue projections with no corroborating basis
  • Field importance conflated with endeavor · p1 — argues the field matters, not the specific endeavor
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Notable

AAO withdrew the Director's finding of EB-2 advanced-degree eligibility (using EDGE database to question the foreign degree's equivalency) but nonetheless dismissed on national-importance grounds, reserving review of exceptional-ability eligibility and prongs 2 and 3.

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)
  • Matter of L-A-C-

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