Success Story: NIW Approved Despite an RFE! We Assisted a Senior Engineer from South Korea in Securing Success
Client’s Testimonial:
"I am very happy that my petition was approved, and I truly appreciate all of your work throughout the process.”
On July 9th, 2026, we received another EB-2 NIW (National Interest Waiver) approval for a Senior Engineer in the Field of Human–Computer Interaction (Approval Notice).
General Field: Human–Computer Interaction
Position at the Time of Case Filing: Senior Engineer
Country of Origin: South Korea
State of Residence at the Time of Filing: Minnesota
Approval Notice Date: July 9th, 2026
Processing Time: 6 months, 4 days (Premium Processing Requested)
Case Summary:
We are pleased to share the successful approval of a National Interest Waiver (NIW) petition, filed with Premium Processing and approved after responding to a Request for Evidence (RFE), for a client conducting innovative research in human–computer interaction. Currently employed as a senior engineer in the United States, the client is dedicated to advancing virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) technologies that improve user experience while supporting broader applications in education, workforce training, industrial design, and other technology-driven sectors.
Advancing Immersive Technologies Through Human-Centered Research
The client holds an M.S. in computer science with a minor in health informatics and has developed specialized expertise in human–computer interaction, immersive visualization, and VR/AR systems. The proposed endeavor focuses on creating advanced VR/AR visualization techniques that improve the realism, accessibility, and sustainability of immersive systems while reducing cybersickness and enhancing user comfort, safety, and task performance. By making extended VR/AR use more practical and reliable, the client's research supports wider adoption of immersive technologies in professional training, education, engineering, and other industries where realistic virtual environments can improve efficiency while reducing material waste and operational costs.
Among the client's research contributions are projects that investigate how visual perception influences user comfort in virtual environments, develop techniques that optimize rendering performance without sacrificing realism, and create systems capable of predicting and mitigating cybersickness during immersive experiences. We demonstrated throughout the petition that these innovations extend well beyond academic interest by supporting technologies increasingly relied upon across government, healthcare, education, and industry. Because the research addresses both technological advancement and practical implementation, we showed that the proposed endeavor possesses clear substantial merit and national importance under the Dhanasar framework.
Scholarly Recognition and Growing Research Impact
To establish that the client is well positioned to advance this nationally important work, we documented a record of scholarly productivity, independent recognition, and professional trust within the research community.
The client's credentials included:
- 5 peer-reviewed conference articles, including 2 first-authored publications.
- 1 peer-reviewed journal article.
- 3 granted patents, including 1 first-authored patent.
- 113 citations to published research.
- At least 2 completed peer reviews.
- Research supported by funding from the National Science Foundation.
Rather than presenting these accomplishments as isolated metrics, we explained how they collectively reflected the client's growing influence within the field. The publication record demonstrated sustained contributions to computer science, where premier conference publications represent highly regarded scholarly achievements. Independent citations showed that other researchers had relied upon the client's findings to advance their own work in immersive visualization and virtual reality, while invitations to conduct peer review confirmed that recognized experts considered the client qualified to evaluate new research.
Demonstrating National Importance Through Independent Recognition
In preparing the petition, we focused on explaining how the client's work addresses challenges with implications far beyond a single employer or project. By improving the safety, realism, and scalability of VR/AR systems, the research contributes to technologies that are increasingly important for workforce development, scientific innovation, healthcare applications, and national technological competitiveness. The petition demonstrated that the client's expertise, research record, and future plans positioned the client to continue making meaningful contributions to this rapidly evolving field.
Following the Request for Evidence, we submitted a comprehensive response that further clarified how the evidence satisfied each element of the NIW standard. USCIS ultimately agreed that the client's proposed endeavor serves the national interest and approved the petition.
We at North America Immigration Law Group (NAILG) are honored to have assisted with this successful case and congratulate the client on this important milestone. We look forward to seeing the client's continued contributions toward creating safer, more accessible, and more effective immersive technologies that benefit researchers, professionals, and users across the United States.