Success Stories After RFE: 1 I-140 Approval on March 20, 2026
A Request for Evidence, or RFE, is not a final adjudication outcome. The following success story highlights one NIW approval that emerged from a particularly demanding adjudicative path. This reflects our firm’s experience addressing complex adjudication issues, including cases involving heightened scrutiny and inherent challenges.
Cases With Inherent Challenges
This approval involved several features that made the case more difficult than a straightforward post-filing review.Approval Only After Denial and Motion
The clearest challenge in this batch was procedural. This NIW filing received an RFE, was denied, and was later approved following a motion. That sequence reflects a substantially more complicated adjudicative path than an ordinary RFE response, because the petition had to remain viable not only through additional evidence review but also through post-denial motion practice.Modest Scholarly Record Under Continued Scrutiny
The applicant held a STEM Ph.D. and worked in Biomedical Science, but the scholarly record itself was relatively compact. In the context of an NIW petition that had already received an RFE and denial, that profile stands out because the case still advanced to approval despite a limited and older publication record.Extended Non-Premium Processing Timeline
The case also proceeded without premium processing at the Nebraska Service Center and shows a total processing time of 842 days. That extended timeline adds another layer of complexity, particularly because the petition remained active long enough to move from RFE to denial and then to approval after motion.NIW Approvals After RFE (1)
#1: NIW in Biomedical Science
This NIW approval involved a Postdoctoral Fellow born in Turkey and residing in the United States, who proposed to remain in the same employment role. Filed in Biomedical Science, the petition first received an RFE from Officer EX0178, then a denial, and ultimately obtained approval after the motion to reopen was granted.The applicant held a Ph.D. in a STEM field and presented 1 publication and 20 citations, with the latest peer-reviewed publication from 2017. The filing was supported by four recommendation letters with no testimonial letters submitted.
Proceeded at the Nebraska Service Center without premium processing over a recorded 842-day timeline.
Notable: This case is notable for reaching NIW approval after an RFE, a denial, and a later motion to reopen, while relying on a comparatively modest publication-and-citation profile.