dismissedDEC042023_02B52032023-12-04 · appeal · Nebraska 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, a software developer entrepreneur, proposed to start an IT consultancy in Georgia offering digital strategy, software engineering, and remote-work transformation services to companies, with plans to expand to other states.
Field: information technology consulting / software development · Read the decision (uscis.gov)
Prong 1 — national importancenot established · dispositive
“But these relate more to the substantiality of the proposed endeavor's merit than its national importance.”
“it is not clear from the record how this job creation for the proposed endeavor itself would have a substantial prospective positive economic effect commensurate with national importance”
“the national interest waiver does not exist to address labor shortages”
“the record does not adequately establish that increased employment in these designated underutilized business zones would have positive economic effects commensurate with national importance”
AAO decision text
How the evidence was treated
- business plan · discounted
“the record does not adequately establish that increased employment in these designated underutilized business zones would have positive economic effects commensurate with national importance”
AAO decision text - resume experience · discounted
“The Petitioner's employment verification and employment letters did not reflect how the proposed endeavor implicates national importance because the letters focused on the Petitioner's past work.”
AAO decision text - media · discounted
“these relate more to the substantiality of the proposed endeavor's merit than its national importance”
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
- Occupational shortage argument rejected · p1 — argues a labor shortage — the labor-certification question, not Dhanasar
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Notable
AAO expressly withdrew the Director's finding on substantial merit, crediting the endeavor as substantially meritorious, but still found national importance lacking. Notable extended discussion analyzing the SBA HUBZone program's eligibility requirements to reject Petitioner's argument that basing the business in a HUBZone supported national importance.
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.
- Matter of L-A-C-
- Matter of Y-B-
- Poursina v. USCIS
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