NIW Bearings
dismissedMAR242026_04B52032026-03-24 · appeal

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 lead information systems analyst for a Saudi oil-and-gas company, proposed to design and implement a cybersecurity framework integrating SIEM and DLP tools to protect operational technology and industrial control systems within the U.S. energy grid and oil-and-gas pipeline infrastructure.

Field: cybersecurity / industrial control systems for energy infrastructure · Read the decision (uscis.gov)

EB-2 threshold — addressed

SCOPS found petitioner qualified as an advanced degree professional based on a foreign master's degree, but AAO noted the record lacks evidence the degree equates to a U.S. accredited degree; because petitioner had no prior notice on this issue, AAO reserved it for future proceedings rather than deciding it.

Prong 1 — national importancenot established · dispositive

“his references to such generic terms as "national strategy" and a "scalable model" are not corroborated by a sufficiently detailed account of his proposed endeavor”
“it is not the importance of the field in which the Petitioner will work, but the specific endeavor he will pursue that is relevant to assessing its national importance”
“the record does not contain corroborating evidence demonstrating that his endeavor has significant potential to employ U.S. workers or has other substantial positive economic effects”

AAO decision text

Prong 2 — well positionednot established · dispositive

“The Petitioner has not provided a model or plan detailing his future activities, but a general summary of his intentions.”
“he has not provided evidence of contact with, or interest from, any of these parties”
“he has not identified sources of funding to support his endeavor or described what other resources would be necessary to pursue his endeavor”
“he has not otherwise shown that his academic accomplishments alone are sufficient to demonstrate that he is well positioned to advance his proposed endeavor”
“credentials, skills, and experience are not solely determinative of an individual is well positioned to advance a proposed endeavor”

AAO decision text

How the evidence was treated

  • recommendation letter · discounted
    “they describe his endeavor only generally as an intention to develop a cybersecurity framework”
    AAO decision text
  • other · discounted
    “the record does not include copies of the reports or studies referenced, we cannot determine whether or how they demonstrate the national importance”
    AAO decision text
  • degree · discounted
    “he has not otherwise shown that his academic accomplishments alone are sufficient to demonstrate that he is well positioned”
    AAO decision text
  • resume experience · discounted
    “credentials, skills, and experience are not solely determinative of an individual is well positioned to advance a proposed endeavor”
    AAO decision text
  • certification membership · discounted
    “credentials, skills, and experience are not solely determinative of an individual is well positioned to advance a proposed endeavor”
    AAO decision text

Where this case turned

  • Economic claims unsupported · p1 — job/revenue projections with no corroborating basis
  • Endeavor too vague · p1 — described as a job role, not a defined undertaking
  • Field importance conflated with endeavor · p1 — argues the field matters, not the specific endeavor
  • Business plan speculative · p2 — projections without a documented basis or steps
  • Education alone insufficient · p2 — degrees offered as positioning — credentials are not a track record
  • Funding absent · p2 — no documented funding or resources behind the plan
  • No progress evidence · p2 — no documented movement toward the endeavor since filing
  • Record of success insufficient · p2 — a claimed track record the documents do not establish
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Notable

AAO withdrew SCOPS' favorable finding on national importance (prong 1) but still dismissed the appeal, finding both prong 1 and prong 2 independently dispositive; the underlying EB-2 threshold classification issue (foreign degree equivalency) was explicitly reserved for future proceedings rather than decided due to lack of prior notice to petitioner.

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

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