POLICY MANUAL UPDATE: Deferred Action as an Extraordinary Use of Prosecutorial Discretion
Citizenship and Immigration Services
Notice Date: May 8, 2026
Effective Date: May 8, 2026
This update clarifies that prosecutorial discretion requires an individual case-by-case determination rather than determining eligibility based on membership in preferred categories of aliens.
Abuse of prosecutorial discretion was a main driver of the Biden Administration's effort to flood the country will millions of illegal aliens. This is an effort to curb abuse of discretion, but always keep in mind this can be reversed by the next Administration. Only Congress could curtail these abuses permanently.