REGULATION: Removing Deference to Prior USCIS Determinations of Eligibility
Citizenship and Immigration Services
Notice Date: Oct. 14, 2026
Effective Date: Nov. 16, 2026
USCIS proposes to remove 8 CFR 214.1(c)(5), which generally provides that USCIS gives deference to a prior approval involving the same facts when adjudicating a request to extend a petition for an alien’s employment or stay.
We have discussed the problems with deference to prior determinations of eligibility before. Namely, it blurs the burden of proof, which always must lie with the alien. When USCIS defers to prior determinations, it is not conducting proper vetting. This can mean mistakes and fraud are perpetually approved due to deference. Applications should be approved based on their merits after careful consideration of all the evidence. Deference allows fraud to be approved in the name of efficiency perpetually. Streamlining fraud is the definition of inefficiency.