The Petitioner, a project manager with vehicle-auction industry experience, proposed to start his own management consulting company in Florida to help small and medium-sized U.S. businesses improve profitability, operations, and compliance.

Prong 1 — national importancenot established · dispositive

“the potential for a limited contribution to a proclaimed national cause cannot, itself, be considered national in scope.”

“the potential prospective impact of the Petitioner's proposed activities, that constitute the endeavor, is mainly on the Petitioner's employees and its customers, and not beyond.”

“the relevant question is not the importance of the field, industry, or profession in which the individual will work”

“The Petitioner has not provided a sufficient foundation for these projections, such as the number and size of clients he will need to achieve them.”

“the record does not show that the Petitioner's proposed endeavor stands to sufficiently extend beyond his clientele to impact business management consulting more broadly”

AAO decision text

How the evidence was treated

• business plan · discounted

  “The Petitioner has not provided a sufficient foundation for these projections, such as the number and size of clients he will need to achieve them.”

  AAO decision text
• other · discounted

  “fail to demonstrate how the petitioner's specific endeavor has national or even global implications”

  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
• Field importance conflated with endeavor · p1 — argues the field matters, not the specific endeavor
• Local, not national scope · p1 — impact confined to clients / a region

Notable

AAO cites a White House fact sheet on small business initiatives submitted by Petitioner and explicitly rejects the argument that alignment with a proclaimed national policy initiative establishes national scope.

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
• Flores v. Garland
• INA 203(b)(2)
• Matter of L-A-C-

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