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The following criteria have been used to determine national interest:

• Improving the U.S. economy;
• Improving wages and working conditions of U.S. workers;
• Improving education and training programs for U.S. children and under-qualified workers;
• Improving health care;
• Providing more affordable housing for young and/or older, poorer U.S. residents;
• Improving the environment of the U.S. and making more productive use of natural resources; or
• A request from an interested U.S. Government agency.

On August 7, 1998, the INS Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) in a case called Matter of New York State Department of Transportation articulated an analytical framework for determining whether a particular beneficiary should be granted a "national interest waiver," of which it requires:

• The benefits of proposed employment must be national in scope;
• The employment must be in an area of substantial intrinsic merit;
• Must demonstrates an applicant's ability to perform the duties of the proposed employment position;
• An applicant must persuasively demonstrate that the national interest would be adversely affected if a labor certification were required;
• Must establish an applicant is not seeking a national interest waiver based on a shortage of qualified workers in a given field;
• The past record of achievement must justify projections of future benefit to the national interest and must demonstrate to some degree an applicant's influence on the proposed field of employment as a whole.

National Interest Waiver can also be used by a physician, who is willing to serve in a medically underserved area. If you are interested, please see a memo from INS and a recent update, 1/23/07 Aytes Memo on NIW Physicians.

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