Search a substantial collection of case-specific reasoning, then narrow it by petition, field, legal issue, or date.
This expanded collection favors source-backed access over perfect automated classification. Fields, labels, summaries, and relevance may contain errors; records marked ‘broader context’ need extra care. Review the cited source before relying on any record. These appeals and motions do not show approval odds or denial rates, and are not legal advice or a prediction.
10,847 decisions /36,849 findings
Showing 20011–20020
NIWNIW · National importanceNot establishedAutomated extraction · broader context
Case facts
Social Sciences
Issue evaluated
NIW · National importance
substantial intrinsic merit
Why AAO was not persuaded
AAO acknowledged the general importance of teaching but noted there is no blanket waiver for teachers and that qualifying as a member of the professions does not itself justify a waiver. The NCLBA did not amend the national interest waiver provisions of the INA.
Why this is useful
Compare how the decision separates a broadly important field from the prospective impact of the applicant’s specific work.
View full reasoning +
AAO acknowledged the general importance of teaching but noted there is no blanket waiver for teachers and that qualifying as a member of the professions does not itself justify a waiver. The NCLBA did not amend the national interest waiver provisions of the INA.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2014-07-02_07_B5203; source_row=18126 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
beneficiary possesses education/training/experience required by labor certification as of priority date
Why the evidence was persuasive
AAO concluded on de novo review that the beneficiary more likely than not had the required education, training, and experience as of the priority date.
Why this is useful
Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.
View full reasoning +
AAO concluded on de novo review that the beneficiary more likely than not had the required education, training, and experience as of the priority date.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2014-06-30_02_B5203; source_row=18096 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
five years of experience as Operations Research Analyst
Why AAO was not persuaded
Inconsistent accounts and the labor certification's prohibition on alternate occupation experience preclude the petitioner from establishing the required five years of experience; remand allows rebuttal.
Why this is useful
Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.
View full reasoning +
Inconsistent accounts and the labor certification's prohibition on alternate occupation experience preclude the petitioner from establishing the required five years of experience; remand allows rebuttal.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2014-06-30_01_B5203; source_row=18094 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
AAO withdrew the director's specific basis but, based on new DS-160 evidence indicating the beneficiary may be the son of the president of the Korean parent company, found a separate undisclosed familial relationship issue that undermines the bona fide nature of the job offer.
Why this is useful
Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.
View full reasoning +
AAO withdrew the director's specific basis but, based on new DS-160 evidence indicating the beneficiary may be the son of the president of the Korean parent company, found a separate undisclosed familial relationship issue that undermines the bona fide nature of the job offer.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2014-06-30_01_B5203; source_row=18093 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
advanced degree qualification (five years qualifying experience)
Why AAO was not persuaded
The AAO noted the beneficiary's Philippine bachelor's degree appeared equivalent to a U.S. baccalaureate degree, but no evidence was submitted to show five years of qualifying specialty experience as required to elevate that degree to an advanced degree. The petitioner failed to respond to the NOID requesting such evidence.
Why this is useful
Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.
View full reasoning +
The AAO noted the beneficiary's Philippine bachelor's degree appeared equivalent to a U.S. baccalaureate degree, but no evidence was submitted to show five years of qualifying specialty experience as required to elevate that degree to an advanced degree. The petitioner failed to respond to the NOID requesting such evidence.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2014-06-27_01_B5203; source_row=18090 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
single foreign equivalent degree to a U.S. baccalaureate
Why AAO was not persuaded
AAO relies on EDGE, which equates the three-year Bachelor of Commerce to two-to-three years of U.S. study, and on the principle from Snapnames that the advanced degree professional classification requires a single foreign equivalent degree from a college or university. The professional body is not an institution of higher education that can confer a degree.
Why this is useful
Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.
View full reasoning +
AAO relies on EDGE, which equates the three-year Bachelor of Commerce to two-to-three years of U.S. study, and on the principle from Snapnames that the advanced degree professional classification requires a single foreign equivalent degree from a college or university. The professional body is not an institution of higher education that can confer a degree.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2014-06-27_03_B5203; source_row=18092 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
Continuing ability to pay proffered wage from priority date
Why AAO was not persuaded
The petitioner paid the beneficiary $64,438.44 in 2012 against a proffered wage of $108,534, leaving a $44,095.56 shortfall. The petitioner's 2012 net income was -$514,629 and net current assets were -$332,711. No amended tax return was submitted to correct the alleged accountant error.…
Why this is useful
Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.
View full reasoning +
The petitioner paid the beneficiary $64,438.44 in 2012 against a proffered wage of $108,534, leaving a $44,095.56 shortfall. The petitioner's 2012 net income was -$514,629 and net current assets were -$332,711. No amended tax return was submitted to correct the alleged accountant error. The extraordinary expense claim of $69,768 and the unsubstantiated Hurricane Sandy business interruption were insufficient to overcome the deficit, and the petitioner's historical financial record (deficit in 2009) did not demonstrate the stability required under the Sonegawa totality-of-circumstances analysis.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2014-06-27_02_B5203; source_row=18091 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
AAO determined the Google Scholar results were not new evidence and the Wikipedia article lacks probative value and does not establish that the indexed work appeared in a qualifying publication.
Why this is useful
See how AAO evaluated whether the work qualified as scholarly authorship and what it showed in the full record.
View full reasoning +
AAO determined the Google Scholar results were not new evidence and the Wikipedia article lacks probative value and does not establish that the indexed work appeared in a qualifying publication.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2014-06-25_01_B2203; source_row=18084 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c