The Petitioner, a registered nurse, seeks classification as a member of the professions holding an advanced degree. See Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act) section 203(b)(2), 8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(2). The Petitioner also seeks a national interest waiver of the job offer requirement that is attached to this EB-2 immigrant classification. See section 203(b)(2)(B)(i) of the Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(2)(B)(i). U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may grant this discretionary waiver of the required job offer, and thus of a labor certification, when it is in the national interest to do so.
The Director of the Texas Service Center denied the petition, concluding that although the Petitioner qualified for classification as a member of the professions holding an advanced degree, she had not established that a waiver of the required job offer, and thus of the labor certification, would be in the national interest. The matter is now before us on appeal. 8 C.F.R. § 103.3.
The Petitioner bears the burden of proof to demonstrate eligibility by apreponderance of the evidence. Matter of Chawathe, 25 l&N Dec. 369, 375-76 (AAO 2010). We review the questions in this matter de nova. Matter of Christo 's, Inc., 26 l&N Dec. 537, 537 n.2 (AAO 2015). Upon de nova review, we will dismiss the appeal.
Law
To establish eligibility for a national interest waiver, a petitioner must first demonstrate qualification for the underlying EB-2 visa classification, as either an advanced degree professional or an individual of exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business. Section 203(b)(2)(B)(i) of the Act. Because this classification requires that the individual's services be sought by a U.S. employer, a separate showing is required to establish that a waiver of the job offer requirement is in the national interest. While neither the statute nor the pertinent regulations define the term "national interest," we set forth a framework for adjudicating national interest waiver petitions in the precedent decision Matter of Dhanasar, 26 l&N Dec. 884 (AAO 2016). Dhanasar states that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration p. 2 Services (USCIS) may, as matter of discretion1
, grant a national interest waiver of the job offer, and thus the labor certification, to a petitioner classified in the EB-2 category if the petitioner demonstrates that (1) the noncitizen's proposed endeavor has both substantial merit and national importance; (2) the noncitizen is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor; and (3) that on balance it would be beneficial to the United States to waive the requirements of a job offer and thus of a labor certification. The first prong, substantial merit and national importance, focuses on the specific endeavor that the noncitizen proposes to undertake. The endeavor's merit may be demonstrated in a range ofareas such as business, entrepreneurialism, science, technology, culture, health, or education. In determining whether the proposed endeavor has national importance, we consider its potential prospective impact. The second prong shifts the focus from the proposed endeavor to the noncitizen. To determine whether the noncitizen is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor, we consider factors including but not limited to the individual's education, skills, knowledge, and record of success in related or similar efforts. A model or plan for future activities, progress towards achieving the proposed endeavor, and the interest of potential customers, users, investors, or other relevant entities or individuals are also key considerations.
The third prong requires the petitioner to demonstrate that, on balance of applicable factors, it would be beneficial to the United States to waive the requirements of a job offer and thus of a labor certification. USCIS may evaluate factors such as whether, in light of the nature of the noncitizen's qualification or the proposed endeavor, it would be impractical either for the noncitizen to secure a job offer or for the petitioner to obtain a labor certification; whether, in I ight of the nature of the noncitizen's qualification or the proposed endeavor, it would be impractical either for the noncitizen to secure a job offer or for the petitioner to obtain a labor certification; whether, even assuming that other qualified U.S. workers are available, the United States would still benefit from the noncitizen's contributions; and whether the national interest in the noncitizen's contributions is sufficiently urgent to warrant forgoing the labor certification process. Each of the factors considered must, taken together, indicate that on balance it would be beneficial to the United States to waive the requirements of a job offer and thus of a labor certification.
Analysis
The Petitioner, a registered nurse, seeks to work as a nurse and trainer in Florida while obtaining a doctor of nursing practice (DNP) degree. The Director concluded that the Petitioner qualifies as a member of the professions holding an advanced degree. Accordingly, the remaining issue to be determined on appeal is whether the Petitioner has established that a waiver of the requirement of a job offer, and thus of a labor certification, would be in the national interest. For the reasons discussed below, we conclude that the Petitioner has not sufficiently demonstrated the national importance of her proposed endeavor under the first prong of the Dhanasar analytical framework.
The Director issued a request for evidence (RFE) requesting, among other things, further evidence of how the proposed endeavor would be of national importance. In response, the Petitioner provided 1 See also Poursina v. USCIS, 936 F.3d 868 (9th Cir. 2019) (finding USCIS' decision to grant or deny a national interest waiver to be discretionary in nature). p. 3 additional documents including a professional plan explaining her strategy to obtain her DNP in order to become a nurse trainer and researcher. She also asserts that she intends to become a professor at a nursing school as well as become a traveling nurse after working as a nurse for one year.
The Director determined that the Petitioner's proposed endeavor has substantial merit, and that the Petitioner is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor. The Director found however that the Petitioner did not submit evidence to demonstrate the national importance of her endeavor. On appeal, the Petitioner reiterates the same arguments and resubmits previously submitted documents to demonstrate her eligibility for the national interest waiver and underscore the sufficiency of the submitted evidence. For example, the Petitioner contends that she has presented sufficient evidence to overwhelmingly prove that she has met all the requirements for the EB-2 classification and the three prongs of the Dhanasar framework.
The Petitioner states that she will "contribute to the improvement of patient care in the U.S., as nursing is considered an important component of a fully functional national healthcare system." She further maintains that she will use her core competency "to help the US by not only functioning as a highlevel Registered Nurse, but also training other Registered Nurses to benefit the US healthcare community on a national and global level." The Petitioner discusses a nursing shortage in the United States and states that her endeavor of working and training as a nurse and obtaining her DNP will expand the workforce and alleviate the nursing shortage.
In addition, the Petitioner highlights the societal welfare and economic importance of health care professionals such as nurses by pointing to industry and governmental reports on this and other related topics. The materials demonstrate that the registered nursing occupation is important; however, this does not necessarily establish the national importance of the proposed endeavor.
As previously mentioned, the first prong of the Dhanasar test, substantial merit and national importance, focuses on the specific endeavor that the Petitioner proposes to undertake. Matter of Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. at 889. An endeavor's merit may be demonstrated in a range of areas, such as business, entrepreneurial ism, science, technology, culture, health, or education. Id. An endeavor's national importance is determined by examining its potential impact. Id. An endeavor may qualify if, for instance, it has national implications within a particular field, or if it has significant potential to have a substantial economic effect, especially in an economically depressed area. While we acknowledge the healthcare industry's importance, the relevant question when determining whether a proposed endeavor would have national importance is not the importance of the industry or profession where the Petitioner will work, but the specific impact of that proposed endeavor.Argued the field's importance, not the endeavor's Id. at 889-90. Here, the record does not establish that the Petitioner's proposed endeavor's impact will be nationally important.
The Petitioner claims that her endeavor will be nationally important due to the importance of nursing as a profession. However, this establishes the merit of the endeavor, not its national impact, which is a separate consideration under the first Dhanasar prong. Matter of Dhanasar, 26 l&N Dec. at 889-90. In Dhanasar, the noncitizen's work as a science teacher was found to have substantial merit but did not qualify him under the first prong because the evidence did not show how that work would impact the field of science education more broadly. Id. at 893. Similarly, as explained above, the p. 4 Petitioner has not established that her endeavor will have an impact that extends beyond her patients and trainees to the broader field of nursing or healthcare.
The Petitioner states that her endeavor has national importance due to the shortage of nurses in the United States and references fact sheets from the White House's COVID-19 initiatives. She further contends that her endeavor aligns with the four national interests identified by the Biden Administration's Interim National Security Strategic Guidance. Though we acknowledge the Petitioner's skills and experience in the nursing field, the Petitioner has not provided sufficient evidence that her endeavor would resolve the shortage or that her endeavor would stand to provide substantial economic benefits in Florida or the United States.Job creation or economic claims unsupported We further note that the Department of Labor (DOL) has addressed the shortage of nurses by designating professional nursing as a Schedule A occupation, indicating that there are insufficient U.S. workers able, willing, qualified, and available for professional nursing positions. 20 C.F.R. §§ 656.5, 656.15. See generally 6 USCIS Policy Manual E.7(C), https://uscis.gov/policymanual. This designation exempts U.S. employers of noncitizen nurses from having to test the labor market and apply to DOL for a permanent labor certification. 20 C.F.R. § 656.15. However, this is not a waiver of the job offer requirement, and as such it does not support a finding that nursing-related work inherently has national importance in the context of a national interest waiver petition.
We also acknowledge the documentation regarding the Petitioner's experience and qualifications and the recommendation letters commending her abilities and diligence. However, these relate to the second Dhanasar prong, which is concerned with the Petitioner's ability to advance her endeavor. They do not establish what impact her endeavor will have.
For the aforementioned reasons, the Petitioner's proposed work does not meet the first prong of the Dhanasar framework. Because the documentation in the record does not establish the national importance of her proposed endeavor as required by the first prong of the Dhanasar precedent decision, the Petitioner has not demonstrated eligibility for a national interest waiver. Since this issue is dispositive of the Petitioner's appeal, we decline to reach and hereby reserve the appellate arguments regarding her eligibility under the second and third prongs outlined in Dhanasar. See INS v. Bagamasbad, 429 U.S. 24, 25 (1976) ("courts and agencies are not required to make findings on issues the decision of which is unnecessary to the results they reach"); see also Matter of L-A-C-, 26 l&N Dec. 516, 526 n.7 (BIA 2015) (declining to reach alternative issues on appeal where an applicant is otherwise ineligible). Ill. CONCLUSION
As the Petitioner has not met the Dhanasar analytical framework's requisite first prong, we conclude that she has not established that she is eligible for or otherwise merits a national interest waiver as a matter of discretion. The appeal will be dismissed for the above stated reasons.
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed.