Date of Decision: August 04, 2021
Service Center: Nebraska Service Center
Form Type: Form I-140
Case Type: EB1 Extraordinary Ability
Petitioner Information
Profession: Author
Field: Literature and Media
Nationality: Not specified in the document
Summary of Decision
Initial Decision: Denied
Appeal Outcome: Remanded
Evidentiary Criteria Analysis
Criteria Met:
Lesser Nationally or Internationally Recognized Prizes or Awards: The petitioner has received multiple awards, including:
Winner of the Foundation’s Story Writing Contest for Literary Fiction in Filipino (2009).
First Prize in a national poetry competition (2004).
Published Material About the Petitioner: The petitioner was featured in a 2009 article on the ABS-CBN website, a leading media organization in the Philippines, which discussed his career and accomplishments.
Participation as a Judge of the Work of Others: The petitioner served as a judge for the third Short Story Writing Competition in 2007.
Criteria Not Met:
Original Contributions of Major Significance: While the petitioner claimed significant contributions, these were not sufficiently evaluated or acknowledged as meeting the criterion for major significance.
Membership in Associations: The petitioner did not establish that his memberships in certain associations required outstanding achievements judged by recognized experts.
High Salary or Other Significantly High Remuneration: The petitioner did not sufficiently demonstrate commanding a high salary or significantly high remuneration compared to others in his field.
Key Points from the Decision
Awards and Prizes Won:
The petitioner provided evidence of receiving several prestigious awards in his field. Specifically, he won the Foundation’s Story Writing Contest for Literary Fiction in Filipino (2009) and the First Prize in a national poetry competition (2004). However, the petitioner did not provide sufficient evidence for some awards, such as restricted stock units (RSUs), to be recognized nationally or internationally for excellence in literature and media.
Published Materials About the Petitioner:
The petitioner submitted articles about his work published on the ABS-CBN website, which were recognized as major media coverage. The Director found that these articles met the criterion for published material about the petitioner.
Original Contributions of Major Significance:
The petitioner’s contributions were acknowledged, but the Director’s decision did not adequately address this evidence. Letters from experts emphasized the significant impact of his work, but this was not sufficient to meet the criterion.
Participation as a Judge:
The petitioner successfully demonstrated his role as a judge in a writing competition, fulfilling this criterion.
Membership in Associations:
The petitioner’s memberships in certain associations were not discussed in detail, and it was not established that these memberships required outstanding achievements judged by recognized experts.
Authorship of Scholarly Articles:
The petitioner provided evidence of authoring scholarly articles, which met this criterion.
Leading or Critical Role Performed:
The petitioner provided evidence of holding significant positions, demonstrating a leading role in his field.
Artistic Exhibitions or Showcases:
The petitioner did not claim or provide evidence for this criterion.
Evidence of High Salary or Remuneration:
The petitioner did not provide evidence to meet this criterion.
Commercial Successes in the Performing Arts:
The petitioner did not claim or provide evidence for this criterion.
Supporting Documentation
The petitioner submitted documents including articles, letters of recommendation, evidence of his participation in judging, and documentation of his contributions to literature and media. However, these were insufficiently evaluated in the initial decision.
Conclusion
Final Determination:
The appeal resulted in a remand for further review and collection of additional evidence.
Reasoning:
The Director’s decision did not adequately address all the claimed evidentiary criteria and did not provide a thorough explanation for the denial. The case was remanded for a new decision that fully considers the petitioner’s claims and all submitted evidence.
Next Steps:
The petitioner should gather and submit additional evidence to support his claims, particularly focusing on demonstrating his sustained national or international acclaim and the major significance of his contributions to the field of literature and media. The Director will then make a new final determination based on the supplemented record.
