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 general manager with a two-year diploma in financial accounting, sought EB-2 classification and a national interest waiver, apparently intending to continue work in a managerial or accounting capacity in the United States.
Field: financial accounting / general management · Read the decision (uscis.gov)
EB-2 threshold — not met
Petitioner submitted only a two-year 'Diploma of Further Education' in financial accounting and a letter showing general manager experience since 2003. AAO held this does not constitute a foreign equivalent to a U.S. baccalaureate degree; petitioner's argument that a 2-year associate degree plus 6 years of work experience equals a bachelor's degree was rejected as having no statutory or regulatory basis. The diploma was also unaccompanied by an official academic record as required by 8 C.F.R. § 204.5(k)(3)(i)(B).
How the evidence was treated
- degree · discounted
“the Petitioner has not established that his diploma is the foreign equivalent to a U.S. bachelor's degree”
AAO decision text - resume experience · discounted
“there is no provision in the statute or the regulations that would allow a petitioner to qualify under section 203(b)(2) of the Act as a member of the professions holding an advanced degree with anything less than a full baccalaureate degree”
AAO decision text
This record is one of thousands, each coded for the reasons it turned. A placement shows where your profile sits in that record, not what it predicts. See where your profile sits — 90 seconds →
Notable
The case failed entirely at the threshold EB-2 eligibility stage; the AAO never reached the NIW prongs. The petitioner advanced an unsupported '3-for-1' rule argument (three years of employment equals one year of academic study) to bootstrap a two-year diploma into a bachelor's degree equivalent, which the AAO squarely rejected citing INS rulemaking history and Matter of Shah. The NIW prong analysis was also waived on appeal because the petitioner did not contest SCOPS' NIW determination. The adjudicating office is listed as 'Service Center Operations (SCOPS)' rather than a named service center, coded as 'other'.
What this case teaches
Analyst reading of the decision text.
Petitioner failed to establish underlying EB-2 eligibility, lacking a bachelor's-equivalent degree; combined associate diploma plus experience does not satisfy 8 C.F.R. § 204.5(k)(2)-(3). NIW issue waived by not being contested on appeal.
Establish threshold advanced-degree/experience eligibility with a single qualifying degree before appeal, and affirmatively contest all denial grounds including NIW to avoid waiver.
vague
person_focused
Cases in adjacent profiles
- The Petitioner, an aircraft mechanic and instructor, proposed to enhance aviation maintenance training programs, support
- The Petitioner seeks EB-2 classification as a member of the professions holding an advanced degree with a national inter
- The petitioner sought an EB-2 national interest waiver of the job offer requirement, but the substance of the proposed e
- The Beneficiary, sponsored by a private airline, sought EB-2 classification as an individual of exceptional ability in a
- The petitioner sought an EB-2 national interest waiver as a member of the professions holding an advanced degree; the sp