The EB-2 National Interest Waiver lets you self-petition for a green card with no employer and no labor certification. But approval rates have fallen sharply, and the reason is almost always the same: a proposed endeavor that does not clearly show national importance. CaseBuilder reads your full record, maps it to the Dhanasar three-prong test, drafts your petition materials, and flags the gaps most likely to trigger an RFE, while you can still fix them.
NIW is one of the few green card paths where you are your own petitioner: no employer, no job offer, no PERM labor certification. You file Form I-140 on your own behalf, arguing that waiving the usual job-offer requirement is in the national interest.
A few years ago most NIW petitions were approved. That has changed sharply. USCIS now applies the Dhanasar three-prong test far more strictly, and updated its guidance in January 2025 to tighten how proposed endeavor and national importance are evaluated. The single most common reason petitions fall short today is not weak credentials; it is a proposed endeavor written too narrowly or too generically to show national-level impact.
Deciding between NIW, EB-1A, and O-1A? See the comparisonNIW approval rates have fallen from the 90s a few years ago to roughly half today, and the decline is driven by stricter scrutiny of national importance rather than by applicants' qualifications. A Request for Evidence costs you weeks or months, and a denial follows your record into every future filing.
These are USCIS fees, paid directly to the government. They are not part of CaseBuilder's pricing.
Drag in your CV, publications, citation records, recommendation letters, evidence of your work's impact, and anything that supports your proposed endeavor. CaseBuilder reads every document with OCR and pulls out the facts that matter for each Dhanasar prong.
You get a breakdown across all three prongs: substantial merit and national importance, whether you are well positioned to advance the endeavor, and the balancing test. Each one shows what your current evidence supports, what looks borderline, and where USCIS is most likely to push back.
Generate your petition brief, recommendation letter drafts, and exhibit index. Then run the USCIS Officer Review, which simulates how an adjudicator reads the case against each prong and flags weak language, thin corroboration, and likely RFE triggers before you file. You complete the I-140 form itself separately.
Most tools generate text. CaseBuilder pressure-tests it. The Officer Review reads your draft petition the way a USCIS adjudicator would, prong by prong, and surfaces the specific weaknesses that turn into Requests for Evidence, starting with the one that sinks the most cases: a proposed endeavor that does not clearly rise to national importance.
Track record, publications, and progress documented and independently corroborated
Case for waiving labor certification stated, but not yet tied to concrete national benefit
Proposed endeavor framed around one employer; impact reads as local, not national
A lot of people researching NIW are weighing it against two close paths. NIW and EB-1A are both green cards you can self-petition on Form I-140; O-1A is a temporary work visa that needs a U.S. petitioner. NIW asks you to prove your work is in the national interest, rather than to prove top-of-field acclaim.
| NIW (EB-2) | EB-1A | O-1A | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Green card | Green card | Temporary work visa |
| Form | I-140 | I-140 | I-129 |
| Who files | You, self-petition | You, self-petition | U.S. employer, agent, or your own entity |
| Core test | Dhanasar three-prong | 3 of 10 criteria plus final merits | 3 of 8 criteria |
| Best for | Work in the national interest | Sustained acclaim, no employer | Faster, temporary first step |
It doesn't. CaseBuilder is document preparation software, the way TurboTax is for taxes. You stay in control and see every line. If you want a licensed attorney to review your materials before filing, that's available as an add-on, far below the cost of full-service representation.
National importance is not limited to a few headline fields. What matters is how clearly your proposed endeavor is framed and evidenced, including whether the impact is shown beyond a single employer or city. The free assessment shows you where your case currently lands; it does not decide eligibility.
A general chatbot does not know the Dhanasar framework, does not check whether your evidence supports national importance, and does not simulate how an officer reads each prong. CaseBuilder is built around the specific structure and evidentiary logic of NIW petitions.
Founded by Platon Shamaev, an immigration case strategist and EB-2 NIW approval holder who has helped prepare extraordinary ability and national interest petitions at a Manhattan immigration law firm. A graduate of Columbia University's Human Rights Advocates Program, Platon brings legal-sector experience dating back to 2003, spanning investigative work, legal practice, immigration case preparation, and human rights documentation.
Ten minutes, no credit card. You'll see your Dhanasar map and exactly where the gaps are.
Start free assessmentYes. The EB-2 National Interest Waiver is a true self-petition. It waives the usual job-offer and PERM labor certification requirements, so you file Form I-140 on your own behalf. You must first qualify for EB-2 through an advanced degree or exceptional ability, then meet the Dhanasar test.
Dhanasar is the three-prong framework USCIS uses to decide NIW petitions: your proposed endeavor must have substantial merit and national importance, you must be well positioned to advance it, and it must, on balance, benefit the United States to waive the labor certification requirement. All three must be satisfied.
USCIS has applied the Dhanasar standard more strictly, especially the national-importance element, and updated its guidance in January 2025 to tighten how proposed endeavors are evaluated. Most petitions that fall short do so because the endeavor is framed too narrowly or generically to show national-level impact, not because of weak credentials.
Both are green cards you can self-petition on Form I-140. NIW (EB-2) asks you to show your work is in the national interest under the Dhanasar test. EB-1A asks you to show extraordinary ability through at least three of ten criteria plus a final-merits review.
No. CaseBuilder helps you prepare petition drafts, organize evidence, build an exhibit index, generate recommendation letter drafts, run an AI officer-style review, and produce downloadable outputs. You or a professional complete the I-140 separately. The platform provides reference and sample form materials for guidance.
No. No software or attorney can guarantee approval, and USCIS decides every case independently. CaseBuilder helps you prepare a stronger, better-organized petition and flags weak spots before you file, but the final decision always rests with USCIS.
No. CaseBuilder prepares draft materials and evidence organization for you to review. You handle form completion and the actual filing. CaseBuilder is document preparation software, not a law firm, and using it does not create an attorney-client relationship.