AAO research

AAO EB-1A decision APR042025_02B2203: investment banking and failure to meet the three‑criterion threshold (waiver/abandonment)

If an EB‑1A petition cannot establish at least three of the regulatory criteria, the AAO may treat the appeal as dispositive and will not evaluate the remaining criteria. Evidence showing the associate investment banker role involved leading or critical responsibilities.; Documentation of salary lev

Decision Snapshot

Field Value --- --- Decision ID APR042025_02B2203 Decision date not stated in the extraction Outcome dismissed Field or occupation investment banking Final merits discussed No / not stated

Criteria Discussed

  • artistic_display

  • awards

  • commercial_success

  • high_salary

  • judging

  • leading_critical_role

  • membership

  • original_contributions

  • published_material

  • scholarly_articles

Criteria Accepted

Not stated in the extracted decision plan.

Criteria Rejected

  • high_salary

  • leading_critical_role

  • membership

  • published_material

Core Lesson

If an EB‑1A petition cannot establish at least three of the regulatory criteria, the AAO may treat the appeal as dispositive and will not evaluate the remaining criteria.

Evidence Issue

  • Evidence showing the associate investment banker role involved leading or critical responsibilities.

  • Documentation of salary levels compared to industry peers.

  • Proof that the professional associations require members to have outstanding achievements.

  • Published material that establishes sustained national or international acclaim.

How This Connects

This decision is part of Extraordinary's AAO EB-1A corpus. It is exposed as a structured decision card so readers, search engines, and AI search systems can connect the decision to broader EB-1A evidence patterns.

Source Note

Non-precedent AAO decisions are used as evidence examples. They are not binding authority and do not predict any individual case.