USCIS Reinstates Policy Instructing Officers to give Deference to Prior Determinations in Extension Requests

On April 27, 2021, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued policy guidance instructing officers to give deference to prior determinations of eligibility when adjudicating extension requests involving the same parties and facts. Deference to prior determinations will not apply where there is a material error or material change in circumstances or eligibility. This guidance affirms that USCIS considers, but does not defer to, previous eligibility determinations on petitions or applications made by other U.S. government agencies. 

This guidance largely restores USCIS’s 2004 deference policy, which was rescinded in 2017. This policy directed officers to defer to prior determinations of eligibility when adjudicating extension requests involving the same parties and facts as the initial petition or application.  

Affording deference to prior approvals involving the same parties promotes effective and fair adjudication of immigration benefits in accordance with President Biden’s executive order, Restoring Faith in Our Legal Immigration Systems and Strengthening Integration and Inclusion Efforts for New Americans.