EB-1A for Researcher in Health Communication

• The applicant’s previous I-140 Eb-1A was denied by USCIS.
• The applicant’s original intent assertions were vague, not detailing whether there’s a need for his services which U.S. medical schools and hospitals provide, or what his actual work will be in the U.S.

BACKGROUND

Dr. Thi has previously filed for an EB-1A Petition for Alien of Extraordinary Ability. His original application was denied by USCIS. Among many reasons for denial the main issue was because it lacked clear evidence that Dr. Thi would be coming to the U.S. to continue to work in his area of expertise.

Dr. Thi is a seasoned medical worker that specializes in Clinical Medicine and Public Health Communication. He worked as one of the leading experts in the Chinese public health industry. Dr. Thi wanted to bring his health literacy research and mechanism to the United States and utilize U.S. resources in spreading global health awareness globally.

KEYS TO SUCCESS

In order for one to be successful in his EB-1A application, there are several requirements that are necessary according to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services regulations:

1. The applicant has extraordinary ability in the claimed area of expertise which has been demonstrated by sustained national or international acclaim, and whose achievements have been recognized in the field through extensive documentation.
2. The applicant seeks to enter the U.S. to continue work in the area of extraordinary ability, and
3. The applicant’s entry into the U.S. will substantially benefit prospectively the U.S.

Extraordinary Ability Sustained National or International Acclaim

Dr. Thi is extraordinary in the field of clinical medicine and public health communication. In his previous submission, his scholarly articles documentation was the only evidence that satisfied the criterion requirement.

To demonstrate Dr. Thi’s awards reception is sufficient to meet the criterion requirement, we conducted extensive research and submitted additional third-party media coverage supporting each award is recognized for excellence in the field. We also rewrote and reconstructed the language for each award in support that the award is further recognized by other experts in the discipline as the field of medicine does not often award practitioners.

To demonstrate Dr. Thi’s membership in association in the field requires outstanding achievements of their members as judged by recognized experts, we submitted additional documentational evidence including third-party media coverage for each association concerning other members’ achievements. We also submitted bylaws, and membership requirements in support of the stringent admission requirements for each association.

To demonstrate Dr. Thi’s published material about his professional achievement in major media satisfied criterion requirement, we submitted Certified Court Translation for each of the media publications. We explained to the officer that the content of the submitted media articles is primarily focusing on Dr. Thi’s professional medical advice to the public.

To demonstrate Dr. Thi’s participation as a judge satisfied the criterion requirement, we have to explicitly explain that his work as a judge is outside of his inherent job duties, and that all of his judgeship appointments were based on his extraordinary ability and professional achievements in the field.

To demonstrate Dr. Thi’s contributions are significant in the field. We had to explain extensively that his work has substantial influence beyond his employer, clients and customers.

To demonstrate Dr. Thi has performed in a leading or critical role, we had to conduct thorough background research for each association in order to submit additional documentation evidence to establish their prominence.

Enter the U.S. to Continue Work in the Area of Extraordinary Ability

USCIS did not believe Dr. Thi was coming to the U.S. to continue working in his field. They denied his original application mainly because his work intent assertions were vague. USCIS further concluded that Dr. Thi’s original business plan was a “awkwardly written study plan, and other documentation that does not support the claim”.

We created a new detailed business plan for Dr. Thi’s U.S. company. In the business plan, we provided information including, but no limited to Executive Summary, Mission, Proffered Services, Business Scope, Sources of Funding, Organizational Chart, and Viability Analysis.

We registered and created a functional company website specifically for Dr. Thi’s business. The website consists of interactive features with detailed descriptions of the company. We also redrafted the Letter of Intent to be more in-depth in congruent with the business plan.

We believe the key of Dr. Thi’s EB-1A approval at this time was because we clearly stated his U.S. intention in the business plan. We carefully constructed his work plan, and company structure based on practical business simulation and projection. The financial and SWOT analysis were conducted through extensive research based on similar firms in the U.S. field.

The difference of whether an applicant has a strong or weak business plan has substantial influence on the adjudication of an EB-1A application.

Entry Will Substantially Benefit Prospectively in the U.S.

USCIS also challenged Dr. Thi’s original submission lacked detail whether there’s a need for his services which U.S. medical schools or hospitals are providing to the public. Based on the statement, USCIS believed there’s no market need or tangible benefits of Dr. Thi’s prospective work and services in the U.S.

In order to overcome this negative assumption, we conducted comprehensive study in public health scholarly articles, medical journals, and media publications to search for documentational sources to support Dr. This work is in fact needed and beneficial to the U.S.

In our submission, we were able to cite and reference World Health Organization, US National Library of Medicine National Institute of Health, OECD, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the Washington Post to support Dr. Thi’s company and work is needed in the U.S. and that it will substantially benefit the U.S.

OUTCOME

Our client’s EB-1A visa was approved three days after filing with no request for evidence. The Petitioner was tremendously happy and is qualified to receive permanent residency after Consular Processing in China. With the previous denial of his case, Dr. Thi was not terribly confident of success. We assured him that there are ways to strengthen his case, and we did.