Success Story: NAILG Helps Electrical Engineering Ph.D. Student Secure NIW Approval for Privacy-Preserving Smart City Technologies
Client’s Testimonial:
“Thanks a lot for your support throughout this process.”
On September 2nd, 2026, we received another EB-2 NIW (National Interest Waiver) approval for a Ph.D. Student in the Field of Electrical Engineering (Approval Notice).
General Field: Electrical Engineering
Position at the Time of Case Filing: Ph.D. Student
Country of Origin: Iran
State of Residence at the Time of Filing: New York
Approval Notice Date: September 2nd, 2026
Processing Time: 25 months (Premium Processing Requested)
Case Summary:
The client sought the assistance of North America Immigration Law Group (Chen Immigration Law Associates) to pursue an EB-2 National Interest Waiver based on her electrical engineering research. Her proposed endeavor focused on developing low-cost, scalable, and privacy-preserving sensor data analytics capable of interpreting audio and video data in real time. These technologies were designed for applications such as improving traffic flow, transportation efficiency, urban planning, and public safety.
The client successfully translated her research into practical smart-city technologies. Her contributions include developing privacy-conscious analytics and integrated sensor networks to significantly improve urban transportation safety and situational awareness. Crucially, her work achieved a vital technical balance: extracting actionable data from large-scale networks while strictly minimizing privacy risks and computational overhead. As one expert noted, her integration of cutting-edge technologies represents a "major advancement" in improving urban planning and efficiency.
To establish the client’s preparation to continue this work, NAILG presented several complementary indicators of achievement. She held a master’s degree in electrical engineering and had produced 1 first-authored peer-reviewed journal article, 4 peer-reviewed conference articles, and 2 preprints. Her publications had received 25 citations.
Beyond publication metrics, the petition documented both institutional support and subsequent use of the client’s research. Her projects received funding from the Army Research Office (ARO) and the National Science Foundation (NSF). Independent researchers have widely adopted the client's frameworks across diverse sectors, proving the broad adaptability and foundational value of her concepts.
NAILG successfully connected this record of independent implementation to the national interest. The petition demonstrated that her privacy-preserving analytics directly mitigate the substantial economic and safety costs of U.S. transportation inefficiencies. By aligning her work with federal priorities in AI and advanced computing, and highlighting her strong history of external funding and awards, the filing comprehensively proved her exceptional ability to advance this critical endeavor.
After the petition had been pending for an extended period, premium processing was requested on July 2nd, 2026. USCIS approved the NIW petition on September 2nd, 2026, bringing the 25-month processing period to a successful conclusion. Through a petition that placed the client’s technical accomplishments in the context of their real-world applications, NAILG demonstrated how her continued electrical engineering research could contribute to smarter transportation, improved public safety, and the advancement of emerging technologies in the United States.