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 sought to start and operate a commercial flooring business in the United States, employing U.S. workers and applying his business management experience.
Field: commercial flooring industry · Read the decision (uscis.gov)
EB-2 threshold — not met
AAO withdrew the Director's favorable finding on advanced-degree-professional eligibility, finding the experience letters deficient: they lacked specific duty descriptions, were authored by the company accountant rather than a former employer/trainer, and omitted the author's address, contrary to 8 C.F.R. 204.5(g).
Prong 1 — national importancenot established · dispositive
“the record does not suggest that the Petitioner's business management abilities or methodologies somehow differ from, or improve upon, those already available and in use in the United States”
“the benefits of the proposed endeavor would not travel far beyond the Petitioner's company, its employees, or its clients”
“The types of impact of his entrepreneurialism and the resulting benefits to the economy are incremental and are not impactful at the level warranting a waiver of the job offer requirement”
“Nominal growth of an industry is not sufficient to meet the national importance requirement under the Dhanasar framework”
AAO decision text
How the evidence was treated
- resume experience · discounted
“each letter lacks a specific description of the duties he performed”
AAO decision text - recommendation letter · discounted
“it appears that he could be a successful business owner in the United States, but that is not what the Dhanasar decision requires”
AAO decision text
Where this case turned
- 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
- Local, not national scope · p1 — impact confined to clients / a region
Notable
AAO reversed the Director's favorable threshold finding on advanced-degree eligibility due to deficient experience letters, but this reversal was not dispositive; the appeal was instead dismissed by adopting and affirming the Director's national-importance (prong 1) determination under the Burbano adopt-and-affirm doctrine.
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. 204.5(k)(2)
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