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 psychologist and therapist, proposed to provide counseling to persons in crisis and continue prior work/research on the behavior of people with addictions, including a 'systematic project' to help addicted people.
Field: psychology/mental health (addiction counseling) · Read the decision (uscis.gov)
EB-2 threshold — addressed
AAO found the Petitioner's foreign master's in psychotherapy equivalent to a U.S. advanced degree via AACRAO EDGE database, qualifying him as an advanced degree professional.
Prong 1 — national importancenot established · dispositive
“The record contains no further description of, or evidence related to, the Petitioner's proposed endeavor and no statements from the Petitioner that specifically address how the submitted evidence establishes his eligibility for a national interest waiver under the Dhanasar framework.”
“the record in this matter does not demonstrate that the Petitioner's proposed endeavor stands to sufficiently impact U.S. interests or the mental health field more broadly at a level commensurate with national importance”
“he has not demonstrated that his specific proposed endeavor has significant potential to employ U.S. workers or otherwise offer substantial positive economic effects for our nation”
AAO decision text
How the evidence was treated
- degree · credited
- resume experience · ignored
“The record contains no further description of, or evidence related to, the Petitioner's 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
- Local, not national scope · p1 — impact confined to clients / a region
Notable
Unusual procedural posture: the Director revoked the petition's approval without issuing a Notice of Intent to Revoke, solely because the Petitioner had not filed Form ETA 750B; AAO found this cured on appeal but identified an independent, unaddressed NIW deficiency and remanded (rather than dismissing or sustaining) so the Director could issue a new NOIR addressing national importance and other issues.
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
- Matter of Ho
- Poursina v. USCIS
What this case teaches
Analyst reading of the decision text.
Record lacked any description of a specific proposed endeavor or evidence tying it to national-level impact on the mental health field or U.S. economy, failing Dhanasar prong one.
Articulate a concrete, well-defined endeavor with explicit statements and evidence linking it to national-scale impact, not just credentials or job description.
vague
economic_job_creation · field_advancement
person_focused
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