Visalytics
Visalytics
dismissed O-1 RFE Issued

Dance Choreographer

Dance Studio · Russia · 2025-01-31

Decision Date
2025-01-31
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

0 of 3 criteria met
Receipt of lesser national or international prizes or awards for excellence (Not Met)

The Beneficiary's third and second place awards from a modern dance and cheerleading competition were not deemed significant national or international awards comparable to an Academy Award, Emmy, or Grammy due to insufficient evidence of their purpose, selection process, eligibility, or recognition beyond the event.

Performance in a lead, starring, or critical role for organizations or establishments with a distinguished reputation (Not Met)

The Petitioner failed to establish that the Beneficiary's past or prospective roles as a choreographer constituted a lead, starring, or critical role for distinguished organizations, lacking details on duties, hierarchy, organizational reputation, or measurable impact. A job offer letter submitted after the filing date was also deemed untimely.

A record of major commercial or critically acclaimed successes (Not Met)

The Petitioner did not provide sufficient documentation to demonstrate the Beneficiary's record of major commercial or critically acclaimed successes. Interviews in magazines discussing her background and methodology were not considered evidence of commercial or critical success as required by the criterion.

Commanded a high salary or other substantial remuneration (Not Met)

The Petitioner failed to demonstrate that the Beneficiary commanded a high salary relative to other choreographers in Russia. The provided salary statistics for 'dance teacher' or 'dancers and choreographers' were not specific enough for choreographers, lacked data on the number of users reporting salaries, and did not identify a 'high salary' threshold for comparison.

Why This Petition Was Denied

The appeal was dismissed because the Petitioner failed to demonstrate the Beneficiary's eligibility for O-1 classification. The Beneficiary's awards were not deemed significant national or international prizes comparable to an Academy Award. Furthermore, the Petitioner did not establish that the Beneficiary met at least three of the six alternative evidentiary criteria, specifically failing to prove lead/starring roles in distinguished productions, critical roles for distinguished organizations, major commercial/critically acclaimed successes, or a high salary relative to others in the field, often due to insufficient or untimely evidence.

Request for Evidence (RFE)

Unsuccessfully Addressed

The RFE requested pay statements to verify the Beneficiary's salary, as the initial contracts did not provide earnings information. In response, the Petitioner submitted signed salary verification statements from two dance schools.

RFE Targets
Commanded a high salary or other substantial remuneration

Evidence

Evidence Types
Awards
Media Coverage
Reference Letters Dependent
High Salary
Achievements
  • Third place at the 2013 annual modern dance and cheerleading competition (adult hip-hop solo female open class)
  • Second place at the 2014 annual modern dance and cheerleading competition (adult hip-hop duo)

Similar Cases

Coach

Performing Arts

USCIS O-1 rfe dismissed
2024-08-13
The appeal was dismissed because the Petitioner failed to demonstrate that the Beneficiary met at least three of the eight evidentiary criteria for O-1 classification. Specifically, claims for judging work of others were not considered as they were raised for the first time on appeal. Evidence for original contributions of major significance (directing/choreographing a musical show) was deemed insufficient, lacking proof of major impact. Employment in a critical or essential capacity for distinguished organizations (charity sport event, TV show, dance camp) was not established, as the entities' distinguished reputations were not proven, nor was the Beneficiary's role shown to be critical or essential. Finally, the Beneficiary's proposed salary of $60,000 as a dance instructor was not considered 'high' relative to comparable data for dancers, which was also deemed an inappropriate comparison.

Others

Performing Arts

USCIS O-1 rfe dismissed
2024-08-15
The appeal was dismissed because the Petitioner failed to demonstrate the Beneficiary met at least three of the eight regulatory criteria for O-1 extraordinary ability. Specifically, the AAO found insufficient evidence for the judging criterion (lack of specific event participation), original contributions (show lacked major significance proof), critical employment role (events/shows not 'organizations' and roles not proven critical for distinguished entities, and distinguished reputation of entities not established), and high remuneration (salary not high relative to comparable dance instructors, as data was for 'Dancers' and salary was only slightly above average).

Others

Performing Arts

USCIS O-1 rfe dismissed
2022-12-29
The appeal was dismissed because the petitioner applied under the 'arts' classification while the beneficiary's role as a competitive dancer-athlete belongs in 'athletics.' Additionally, the petitioner failed to satisfy at least three evidentiary criteria, only meeting the criterion for significant recognition from experts. Evidence for lead roles and major media coverage was found insufficient or not probative of the regulatory standards.

Art Director

Performing Arts

USCIS O-1 rfe dismissed
California 2024-12-11
The AAO dismissed the appeal because the Petitioner failed to establish the Beneficiary met at least three of the regulatory criteria for O-1 classification. Specifically, the Petitioner did not provide sufficient evidence for the 'lead or starring participant' criterion (8 C.F.R. § 214.2(o)(3)(iv)(B)(1)), lacking proof of distinguished reputation for productions and critical reviews. For the 'significant recognition from experts' criterion (8 C.F.R. § 214.2(o)(3)(iv)(B)(5)), submitted letters were deemed to lack probative value due to identical content and authors' lack of independence, and did not collectively demonstrate significant recognition.

Frequently Asked Questions

A dismissed O-1 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

More dismissed cases More Performing Arts cases More cases from Russia

Case data sourced from publicly available petition decisions and case studies. Decision date: 2025-01-31.

Browse all cases

At a Glance

Outcome dismissed
RFE Issued
Criteria Met 0 / 3
Evidence Types 4

O-1 Case Data

Scraped Case Data

Total Cases 90
Success Rate 70.0%
Sustained 63
Dismissed 27

Related Pages

O-1 Overview O-1 in Russia All O-1 Cases O-1 Dashboard

Get Case Insights

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

Join Waitlist