dismissedMAY092024_07B52032024-05-09 · appeal · Texas Service Center
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 massage therapist, proposed to operate a spa offering massage therapy services in Florida.
Field: massage therapy · Read the decision (uscis.gov)
Prong 1 — national importancenot established · dispositive
“the Petitioner did not establish how her specific endeavor has broader implications within the field of massage therapy as claimed”
“these claims were not sufficiently supported by independent evidence in the record”
“the relevant question is not the importance of the industry, field, or profession in which an individual will work”
“The Petitioner has not established that the benefits of her proposed endeavor will extend beyond her own patients or employees to impact the massage therapy field or the U.S. economy more broadly.”
AAO decision text
How the evidence was treated
- other · discounted
“these claims are not supported by the evidence in the record”
AAO decision text - motion resubmission · discounted
“the Petitioner primarily repeats the same claims presented to the Director in response to the request for evidence”
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
- Local, not national scope · p1 — impact confined to clients / a region
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Notable
AAO cites Flores v. Garland (5th Cir. 2023) alongside Ninth, Eleventh, and D.C. Circuit case law confirming NIW grant/denial is discretionary in nature.
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 L-A-C-
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