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 operate a business administration consulting services company based in Florida, providing startup consultations, business plans, financial analysis, and marketing consultations to small and medium-sized companies across various U.S. states.
Field: business administration consulting · Read the decision (uscis.gov)
Prong 1 — national importancenot established · dispositive
“the purported business plan does not convey a plan for the Petitioner's business.”
“The extent of the unsubstantiated, arbitrary, and inconsistent financial information in the purported business plan cast doubt on its veracity”
“the endeavor may benefit the Petitioner as the owner of the business administration consulting services company, and its clients and business partners.”
“The record does not otherwise establish how the proposed endeavor may have substantial positive economic effects, particularly given that the purported business plan anticipates that the company will operate at a financial loss”
“The record also does not establish how the Petitioner's proposal to employ apparently only himself demonstrates how the proposed endeavor has significant potential to employ U.S. workers.”
AAO decision text
How the evidence was treated
- business plan · discounted
“the purported business plan's reliability and sufficiency is undermined, it bears minimal probative value.”
AAO decision text - resume experience · discounted
“immaterial to determining whether the specific, prospective endeavor he proposes to undertake may have the type of broader implications indicative of national importance”
AAO decision text - recommendation letter · discounted
“the letters do not address the specific endeavor he proposes to undertake, and how it may have the type of broader implications indicative of national importance”
AAO decision text - citations publications · discounted
“the generalized information does not discuss the Petitioner, the specific endeavor he proposes to undertake, and how the specific endeavor may have national or even global implications”
AAO decision text - motion resubmission · discounted
“the revised plan presents a set of facts that did not exist at the time the Petitioner filed the Form I-140, it cannot-and does not-establish eligibility”
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
- Employer-specific benefit · p1 — "work furthers my company's product" — value accrues to one firm
Notable
AAO devoted extensive analysis to internal inconsistencies in the submitted business plan (mismatched section numbering, boilerplate template language like 'Your Office-Based Agency', unreconciled salary figures), treating these as undermining the plan's overall reliability under Matter of Ho. AAO also applied the Katigbak/Izummi material-change doctrine to reject a revised business plan submitted in response to the RFE because it reflected facts arising after the filing date.
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. 103.2(b)(1)
- 8 C.F.R. 103.3
- Flores v. Garland
- Matter of Ho
- Matter of Izummi
- Matter of Katigbak
- Matter of L-A-C-
What this case teaches
Analyst reading of the decision text.
The business plan was boilerplate, arbitrary, and internally inconsistent, casting doubt on the record (Matter of Ho); a single owner employing only himself at a projected loss showed no national importance.
A boilerplate or inconsistent business plan casts doubt on your whole record; a single owner employing only himself shows no national importance, and RFE-stage material changes cannot cure a petition.
vague
economic_job_creation · economic_growth_generic
person_focused
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