By Attorney Hong-min Jun

Analysis of AAO Decision March 13, 2024: Simply citing government policies or initiatives is insufficient to meet the national importance requirement for NIW.

Background of the Decision

In its March 13, 2024 decision, the AAO clearly stated that petitioners who rely solely on citing federal government policy documents, executive orders, or national strategy reports to establish national importance have a fundamental flaw in their argument.

The Core Problem: Limitations of Policy Citations

“Merely demonstrating that a field receives government policy attention does not establish that the petitioner’s specific work has national importance in that field.”

Government policy documents can establish the importance of a field, but they cannot establish the importance of an individual applicant's specific work. There is a fundamental distinction between these two things.

The Correct Approach

Petitioners must demonstrate: how their specific work directly advances the achievement of policy goals, the uniqueness and irreplaceability of their contribution in the policy area, and the concrete impact of their work on policy implementation.