I-140 NIW Case Statistics Analysis
Aggregate appeal outcomes, denial patterns, and profession mix from our AAO NIW dataset — plus official USCIS I-140 NIW filing statistics below (those show much higher approval because they are initial petitions, not appeals). Use both lenses to benchmark before you file.
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- AAO decisions in dataset
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- AAO approved share
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See similar cases for my profile →I-140 NIW Case Statistics (2024 Q1 - 2025 Q4)
Not AAO appeals: These figures are USCIS-published I-140 NIW petition volumes and outcomes (initial filings). Approval rates are much higher than the AAO appeal section below because most cases are never appealed.
This data is sourced from I-140 case statistics released by USCIS at https://www.uscis.gov/tools/reports-and-studies/immigration-and-citizenship-data. These statistics represent quarterly trends in NIW applications, approvals, and denials.
Processed Approval Rate
63.4%
47,058 approved of 74,177 total processed cases
Processed Denial Rate
36.6%
27,119 denied of 74,177 total processed cases
Case Resolution Rate by Quarter
This chart shows the approval and denial rates for total processed cases (approved + denied) each quarter. The approval rate represents approved cases divided by total cases processed, and the denial rate represents denied cases divided by total cases processed.
Case Volume and Pending Backlog by Quarter
This chart shows the number of cases received each quarter and the total number of cases pending at the end of each quarter.
Top 10 Countries by Approvals
| Country | Total Approvals | Total Applications | Approval Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| CHINA | 8,680 | 18,055 | 48.1% |
| INDIA | 5,245 | 12,771 | 41.1% |
| IRAN | 3,190 | 4,764 | 67.0% |
| BRAZIL | 2,922 | 11,128 | 26.3% |
| NIGERIA | 2,821 | 6,842 | 41.2% |
| KOREA, SOUTH | 1,621 | 5,333 | 30.4% |
| BANGLADESH | 1,596 | 2,220 | 71.9% |
| PAKISTAN | 1,343 | 4,070 | 33.0% |
| COLOMBIA | 1,081 | 4,488 | 24.1% |
| MEXICO | 479 | 3,038 | 15.8% |
Top 10 Countries by Applications
| Country | Total Applications | Percentage of Total |
|---|---|---|
| CHINA | 18,055 | 17.8% |
| INDIA | 12,771 | 12.6% |
| BRAZIL | 11,128 | 11.0% |
| NIGERIA | 6,842 | 6.8% |
| KOREA, SOUTH | 5,333 | 5.3% |
| IRAN | 4,764 | 4.7% |
| COLOMBIA | 4,488 | 4.4% |
| PAKISTAN | 4,070 | 4.0% |
| VENEZUELA | 3,081 | 3.0% |
| MEXICO | 3,038 | 3.0% |
NIW AAO (Administrative Appeals Office) Case Analysis
The data below represents analysis of appealed NIW/EB2 cases handled by the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO), which reviews appeals from unfavorable USCIS decisions. This is a subset of cases that represent contested outcomes.
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EB-2 NIW approval-rate statistics (May 2026)
Two different rates are routinely confused. The USCIS I-140 NIW first-pass approval rate is roughly 63.4% (FY2024 Q1 – FY2025 Q4). The AAO appeal approval rate — the rate at which already-denied NIW petitions win on appeal — is only 5.9% (375 of 6,362 decisions). The figures below are AAO appeal outcomes unless stated otherwise.
Overall AAO appeal outcomes
Source: 6,362 publicly available USCIS AAO decisions (2015–2026).
| Outcome | Decisions | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Approved (sustained / granted on appeal) | 375 | 5.9% |
| Denied (dismissed on appeal) | 5,292 | 83.2% |
| Remanded | 533 | 8.4% |
AAO appeal approval rate by profession
Approved appeals out of total appeals decided in each field. Denominators shown for transparency.
| Field | Approved / Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific research (physical & life sciences) | 93 / 481 | 19.3% |
| Electrical & electronics engineering | 18 / 136 | 13.2% |
| Medicine & surgery (physicians) | 24 / 227 | 10.6% |
| Information technology & computing | 77 / 1,069 | 7.2% |
| Civil & structural engineering | 7 / 109 | 6.4% |
| Mechanical engineering | 4 / 109 | 3.7% |
| Finance, accounting & insurance | 13 / 400 | 3.3% |
| Education & teaching | 6 / 264 | 2.3% |
| Management & business administration | 9 / 388 | 2.3% |
| Entrepreneurship & startups | 0 / 164 | 0% |
| Nursing | 0 / 106 | 0% |
| Aviation | 0 / 91 | 0% |
AAO appeal approval rate by service center
| Service center | Approved / Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Vermont Service Center | 38 / 284 | 13.4% |
| California Service Center | 12 / 106 | 11.3% |
| Nebraska Service Center | 144 / 1,996 | 7.2% |
| Texas Service Center | 180 / 3,798 | 4.7% |
USCIS I-140 NIW first-pass & processing
- First-pass I-140 NIW approval rate: 63.4% (FY2024 Q1 – FY2025 Q4).
- Pending I-140 NIW caseload: 74,392.
- Implied processing time: 24–25 months — an estimate via Little's Law (pending ÷ quarterly throughput), not an official USCIS figure.
Methodology. AAO figures are derived from 6,362 publicly available USCIS Administrative Appeals Office decisions on EB-2 National Interest Waiver petitions. AAO appeal rates are far lower than first-pass USCIS rates because every case in the corpus was already denied at least once before reaching appeal. I-140 figures come from published USCIS quarterly I-140 statistics. See our methodology for the full pipeline.
How to cite. GreenwayAI, “EB-2 NIW Approval Rate Statistics (May 2026),” https://www.greenwayai.net/analysis. Data current as of May 2026.