dismissed EB-1A

Jiu-Jitsu Athlete

Jiu-Jitsu · 2024-11-05

Decision Date
2024-11-05
This case is from a USCIS Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) appeal decision. Appeal cases represent a subset of petitions and may not reflect typical outcomes.

Framework Evaluation

1 of 3 criteria met
Recipient of lesser nationally or internationally recognized prizes or awards (Met)

The Director and AAO agreed that the Petitioner provided sufficient evidence of being a recipient of a lesser nationally or internationally recognized award.

Published material about the Petitioner (Not Met)

Evidence of published material in Jits Magazine and gracie.com was deemed insufficient because Jits Magazine no longer exists after 25 editions, and gracie.com had low ranking and visitation statistics, failing to qualify as major media.

Original contributions of major significance (Not Met)

While a recommendation letter described the Petitioner's role as creator of a police training program, no evidence was submitted to show the program was taught outside a specific business, used by other law enforcement centers, or considered authoritative within the industry.

Participation as a judge of the work of others (Not Met)

This criterion was not evaluated because the Petitioner had not demonstrated meeting three of the four claimed criteria, and evaluating this criterion would not change the outcome of the appeal.

Why This Petition Was Denied

The appeal was dismissed because the Petitioner failed to demonstrate sustained national or international acclaim or that he is among the small percentage at the very top of his field. Specifically, the Petitioner only met one of the ten EB-1A criteria (lesser nationally or internationally recognized awards). Evidence for 'published material' was deemed insufficient due to the publications' limited reach and demise, and 'original contributions' lacked proof of major significance or widespread adoption. The criterion for 'judging' was not evaluated as it would not change the outcome.

Evidence

Evidence Types
Awards
Media Coverage
Reference Letters Dependent
Original Contributions
Judging Experience
Evidence Submitted
  • participation in national and international jiu-jitsu competitions
  • published articles about the Petitioner in Jits Magazine
  • published articles about the Petitioner in gracie.com
  • recommendation letter describing the Petitioner's role as creator of a police training program

Similar Cases

Others

Sports · Brazil

USCIS EB-1A dismissed
2024-11-21
The appeal was dismissed because, despite meeting three initial criteria, the petitioner failed to demonstrate sustained national or international acclaim or that he was among the small percentage at the very top of his field. The decision highlighted intermittent first-place finishes between 2014-2023, lack of context for competition results (e.g., number of participants, overall performance vs. selective representation), and the fact that a I-degree black belt was not indicative of being at the very top. Post-filing evidence was not considered, and expert opinion letters were given less weight due to contradictions with other evidence.

Coach

Sports · Brazil

USCIS EB-1A rfe dismissed
2024-06-27
The Petitioner failed to meet the minimum requirement of three evidentiary criteria, satisfying only those for awards and judging. Specifically, he did not demonstrate that his coaching techniques or the BJJ Tournament had a widespread impact on the field (original contributions) or that his roles at specific gyms were leading or critical. Consequently, the record did not establish sustained national or international acclaim or that the Petitioner is at the very top of the field.

Others

Sports

USCIS EB-1A dismissed
2024-06-28
The appeal was dismissed because the Petitioner satisfied only one criterion (awards) instead of the required three. Specifically, the IBJJF black belt membership was found to be based on training requirements rather than expert-judged outstanding achievement, and refereeing was viewed as rule enforcement rather than judging. The Petitioner also failed to establish that athletic competitions qualified as artistic exhibitions.

Others

Sports · Brazil

USCIS EB-1A rfe dismissed
2024-12-02
The AAO dismissed the appeal because the petitioner failed to establish a one-time achievement or meet at least three of the 10 EB-1A criteria. Specifically, criteria for lesser awards (i), memberships (ii), published material (iii), original contributions (v), and artistic exhibitions (vii) were not met. For awards, the context for excellence was not established. For memberships, the black belt requirements did not necessitate outstanding achievements. For published material, the publications were not proven to be 'major trade publications or other major media'. For original contributions, the organized tournament was not shown to be of 'major significance'. For exhibitions, Brazilian jiu-jitsu competitions were deemed athletic, not artistic, and thus did not qualify.

Frequently Asked Questions

A dismissed EB-1A petition means USCIS found the evidence insufficient to meet the eligibility criteria. Common reasons include weak documentation, failure to meet the required number of criteria, or insufficient evidence of the claimed qualifications. Petitioners can refile with stronger evidence or explore alternative visa categories.

Browse More Cases

Case data sourced from publicly available petition decisions and case studies. Decision date: 2024-11-05.

Browse all cases

At a Glance

Outcome dismissed
Criteria Met 1 / 3
Evidence Types 5

EB-1A Case Data

Scraped Case Data

Total Cases 919
Success Rate 53.0%
Sustained 487
Dismissed 315

Get Case Insights

Compare your profile against thousands of real petition outcomes. Join the waitlist for personalized analysis.

Join Waitlist