dismissedOCT102023_04B52032023-10-10 · appeal · Nebraska 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 supply chain and internal auditing specialist, proposed to work for U.S. companies to detect and mitigate supply chain fraud, disseminate his expertise through conferences and educational programming, and potentially create an outsourcing/training company for anti-fraud professionals.

Field: supply chain management / internal auditing · Read the decision (uscis.gov)

EB-2 threshold — addressed

The Director found, and AAO agreed, that the Petitioner qualifies for EB-2 classification as an advanced degree professional.

Prong 1 — national importancenot established · dispositive

“the relevant question is not the importance of the industry or profession in which the individual will work; instead, we focus on the "the specific endeavor”

“he does not point to any corroborating evidence to support his general claim that his intended activities would have significant positive effects on "overall revenue"”

“the record does not establish that his employment as a supply chain specialist for a U.S. company would meaningfully impact this demand or alleviate any shortage of workers”

“the fact that a petitioner is qualified for and may accept a position in an industry or sector that is the subject of national initiatives is not sufficient”

“the Petitioner's evidence establishes how his endeavor would positively impact his future employers, but the evidence does not persuasively establish how his endeavor will have a broader impact”

AAO decision text

How the evidence was treated

media · discounted
“the record does not establish that his employment as a supply chain specialist for a U.S. company would meaningfully impact this demand”
AAO decision text
recommendation letter · discounted
“they do not discuss his specific proposed endeavor or explain why it has national importance”
AAO decision text
other · discounted
“the evidence does not specifically show the government's interest in the Petitioner's proposed endeavor or similar endeavors”
AAO decision text
resume experience · discounted
“the Petitioner's knowledge, skills, education, and experience are considerations under Dhanasar's second prong”
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
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
Occupational shortage argument rejected · p1 — argues a labor shortage — the labor-certification question, not Dhanasar

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Notable

AAO explicitly agreed with the Petitioner that direct economic impact/job creation and geographic scope are not the sole factors for national importance, and separately considered a White House Executive Order on America's Supply Chains as a national-initiative argument, but still found it insufficient absent evidence tying the specific endeavor to that initiative.

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
8 C.F.R. 204.5(k)(2)
Matter of L-A-C-
Poursina v. USCIS

What this case teaches

Analyst reading of the decision text.

Decisive factor

Petitioner failed first prong: proposed endeavor (working as supply chain fraud auditor for U.S. companies) lacked evidence of national-level economic, field-wide, or government-initiative impact beyond individual employers.

Transferable lesson

Define a concrete endeavor and provide corroborating data linking it to broad economic, field, or governmental impact—not just employer-specific benefits or personal credentials.

Endeavor framing

vague

National-importance theory

economic_growth_generic · government_interest · field_advancement

Evidence targeting

person_focused

Cases in adjacent profiles

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