Has anyone looked at the document kit for self-filing EB-2 NIW without an attorney that’s being sold for $99 on eb2niw.com? I’m wondering whether there’s anything actually useful in it or if it’s just junk. I couldn’t find any discussions about this kit — has anyone already bought it?
When I was researching this myself, that $99 guide was one of the few that actually exist for filing an NIW (National Interest Waiver) on your own. I saw on a forum someone who assembled an EB-2 NIW case by themselves without a lawyer; in the end they sent it to an attorney for a small fee to review and assess the quality of the work — the attorney only suggested a couple of minor edits; otherwise everything was fine. As for lawyers who talk about scientific publications, awards, judging (serving on panels) and price tags of $15–20k — they’re mixing that up with EB-1A requirements; for NIW specifically that’s not required.
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I filed on my own without a lawyer — these kits are basically checklists and a petition letter template. The template gives you the structure, but you still need to rewrite it for your own case — I revised my petition letter three times before I figured out how to cover all three Dhanasar points. For $99 it’s a reasonable starting point, but you won’t get a ready-made package.
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It’s definitely worth getting the $99 one — at least to understand the structure and see how a petition letter is put together. I worked through the topic myself, and the hardest part is convincingly addressing the three Dhanasar points — everything hinges on the wording there. The main thing is don’t be afraid to rewrite; very few people get it perfect on the first try )
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Self-filing an NIW is doable — I’ve seen cases where people managed without an attorney, but in the end I still recommend having a lawyer review it, at least a paid hour consultation for $300–400. Dhanasar’s three prongs are hard to close without fresh eyes.
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99 bucks is fine. The real work starts when you’re sitting there writing the petition letter — Dhanasar’s three points aren’t a checklist, they’re the argument; my first draft was total garbage.
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Also, via foia.uscis.gov you can request approved petition letters — they’re posted publicly, and looking at real approved cases was, for me personally, more useful than any template. I saw very different approaches there to the third Dhanasar prong — some had two paragraphs, some five pages, and both were approved.
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FOIA approval cases - the third item: Dhanasar sorted it out there in two hours, better than any other set
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It’s better to find 3–4 case studies in your specialty and work through the logic than to use a template — it’s important to understand the argumentation itself, not copy the wording word for word. You’ll also get an RFE for that.
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