CASE: I-140 / National Interest Waiver
CLIENT: Korean
LOCATION: South Korea
Our client contacted us about the possibility of doing a National Interest Waiver self-petition. She is a clinical psychologist in South Korea and she did her Ph.D. in Psychology in the United States. While she was in the U.S., she pursued a career path to become a culturally sensitive and competent psychologist, focusing on working with underserved and/or marginalized diverse populations, while developing specialties in trauma-focused/informed clinical intervention.
Upon review of her credentials and qualifications, our office determined that she was definitely qualified for the National Interest Waiver (NIW) category. Being qualified for NIW is beneficial since you would not need an employer nor family member to petition for you for green card purposes. You’d be eligible for a self-petition and unless you are from China or India, in which case you’d still have to wait for priority dates to be current, you would be eligible to apply for adjustment of status (green card) immediately without any lag in priority dates.
As a primer, NIW applicants must have a master’s or higher degree. The AAO set the new standards for NIW cases in Matter of Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. 884 (AAO 2016). Under the new standard, the petitioner must demonstrate that the foreign national’s proposed endeavor has both substantial merit and national importance. Next, it must be shown that he or she is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor. Finally, the petitioner seeking the waiver needs to demonstrate that, on balance, it would be beneficial to the United States to waive the job offer and labor certification requirements. Id.
Our office concluded that our client’s research and clinical work is of substantial merit, has already aided, and will continue to aid the underserved and/or marginalized diverse population in the United States. Additionally, her trauma-focused/informed clinical care will be beneficial to treat populations (e.g., students, veterans, refugees, women with sexual abuse or domestic violence) who had struggled with developmental and/or shock trauma, and co-occurring conditions including substance use, major depressive disorder, panic disorder, and eating disorder.
Our office prepared a 25-page brief for our client’s NIW filing. Our client also obtained 10 letters of recommendation from her colleagues, clinical psychologists, and internationally-recognized researchers. Our office also included her publication records, work experience records, presentations, and conference materials in the NIW application. We demonstrated that our client is one of the few clinical psychologists who have made significant and substantial contributions to her field of endeavor, that she is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor, and it would be beneficial to the United States to waive the requirements of a job offer and thus of a labor certification for our client.
Our office filed her I-140(NIW) petition to the USCIS Texas Service Center on July 17, 2020. However, on September 27, 2021, the USCIS Texas Service Center issued a Request for Evidence (RFE) and requested our client to provide more evidence to demonstrate that her work is of national importance and she is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor.
Our office prepared the RFE Response brief and explained that our client’s psychology and counseling field and practice, especially as it pertains to the uniqueness of her skills with cross-culture and multinationals, with its growing importance nationwide, is indeed of national importance. Considering the rising problems of mental health and discrimination being an issue even to Asian-Americans, her practice and presence in the U.S. is a benefit nationwide. We filed our RFE response brief on December 15, 2021. Eventually, on January 11, 2021, the USCIS approved her I-140 petition. She can file her immigrant visa via consular processing.