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 proposed to develop and serve as CEO of an aesthetician clinic company, headquartered in Florida with additional locations in Georgia and California, offering cosmetic injectable procedures such as botulinum toxin and dermal fillers.
Field: aesthetician/medical aesthetics business · Read the decision (uscis.gov)
EB-2 threshold — addressed
Director found, and AAO agreed, Petitioner qualified as an advanced-degree professional based on a bachelor's degree and over five years of progressive business experience.
Prong 1 — national importancenot established · dispositive
“The plan also does not demonstrate that the company would have other substantial positive economic effects in an industry that generates nearly $3 billion.”
“our assessment of national importance does not focus on the importance of issues affecting a field or our nation in general”
“While they attest to his past achievements and express confidence in his ability to contribute to the United States, they do not discuss the Petitioner's specific proposed endeavor”
“The business plan does not indicate that the projected employment of 14 to 45 people...represents a significant potential to employ U.S. workers”
AAO decision text
How the evidence was treated
- business plan · discounted
“does not demonstrate that the company would have other substantial positive economic effects”
AAO decision text - recommendation letter · discounted
“do not discuss the Petitioner's specific proposed endeavor or any impact it would have”
AAO decision text - other · discounted
“none of the articles mention the Petitioner or address the potential prospective impact of his proposed endeavor”
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
- Letters conclusory · p1 — letters praise skills in general terms without tracing specific impact
Notable
AAO relies heavily on the mismatch between industry-wide economic statistics and the petitioner's specific, modest projected job creation and revenue figures to reject national importance; also notes that expert and colleague letters, while laudatory, fail to connect to the specific endeavor rather than general potential.
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. 103.3
- Matter of L-A-C-
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