EB-1A I-140 Approved After RFE for Industry Engineer With Limited Publication Record
Case handled by: Hannu Huikuri, Esq., Huikuri Law
Approval Result
I-140 Approved Approximately 2 Weeks After RFE Response
Case Timeline
Approx. 3-Month Total Timeline
Filed with Premium Processing
An experienced industry engineer recently received approval of an EB-1A Form I-140 petition following a Request for Evidence (RFE) from the Nebraska Service Center.
Case Overview
The beneficiary was a career industry engineer whose professional accomplishments were concentrated largely outside of traditional academic publishing.
The original EB-1A petition relied on four regulatory criteria:
- Original contributions of major significance
- Critical or leading role
- High salary
- Participation as a judge of the work of others
The petition was filed with premium processing. Approximately two weeks later, USCIS issued an RFE.
The RFE accepted the judging criterion but challenged the other three criteria.
Addressing the Patent Evidence
One important issue involved the beneficiary’s patent record.
The RFE characterized the patent citations as moderate. According to research submitted with the RFE response, the engineer’s most-cited patent had received 72 citations, which the response used to provide context for the significance of the patent record.
The record also identified major consumer electronics companies among the entities citing the beneficiary’s work.
The response further included a newly granted patent that had been approved only a few weeks after the original EB-1A petition was filed.
Responding to the RFE
Rather than rebuilding the case from scratch, the RFE response returned to the extensive documentary record that had already been submitted with the initial petition.
The response addressed USCIS’s findings individually and identified evidence in the existing record supporting the contested criteria.
The case team also obtained an independent expert advisory opinion from a computer science professor. After reviewing the documentary record, the professor provided an assessment supporting the beneficiary’s qualifications under each of the disputed criteria.
The response also argued that USCIS had not adequately considered evidence already contained in the record.
Outcome
USCIS approved the EB-1A I-140 petition approximately two weeks after receiving the RFE response.
From initial filing through approval, the case took approximately three months.
Case Timeline
Initial Filing — EB-1A I-140 filed with premium processing
Approximately 2 Weeks Later — USCIS issued an RFE
RFE Response Submitted — Detailed response addressing the three disputed criteria
Approximately 2 Weeks After USCIS Received the Response — I-140 approved
Approximate Total Case Timeline 3 months
Key Takeaway
This case illustrates that an EB-1A petition does not necessarily depend on a traditional academic publication profile.
The evidence that matters will depend on the individual’s field, career history, accomplishments, and the specific EB-1A criteria being claimed. In this case, contextual evidence concerning the beneficiary’s patents, professional impact, compensation, critical role, judging experience, and independent expert evaluation helped support the response to USCIS’s concerns.
Every immigration case is different, and past results do not guarantee future outcomes.
Considering an EB-1A Case?
If you are considering an EB-1A petition and would like to better understand whether your professional background may support this category, you can schedule a consultation with Ashoori Law.
Ashoori Law conducts the initial consultation and case screening and, when appropriate, coordinates matters with attorneys in its network.
