🔺 r/USCISuvictoriaslatton·62 days ago
A calmer take on the new USCIS evidence policy from a former USCIS officer and current immigration attorney
Yes, I read the same memo as you. I really don't want to minimize how scary this is, but I don't want to overstate what this means either. Quick context on me: I used to be an immigration officer at USCIS, and I am now an immigration attorney. I have no special insight beyond my own reading of the policy and an educated guess based on my experience with the agency, and none of this is legal advice. Here is the short version of what changed. As of August 5, officers are now allowed to deny a case without first sending a Request for Evidence or a Notice of Intent to Deny when required evidence is missing or does not establish eligibility. In the past, you could usually count on getting one of those letters as a chance to fix things. Here is the part I think is getting lost: the key word is "allowed." Just because an officer can deny without an RFE does not mean they have to. This still comes down to officer discretion, and that discretion did not go anywhere. Officers are real people doing a hard job, and many of them will still send an RFE when a case is close or a document is simply missing. I say that as someone who used to be one of them. I also want to note that everyone fears a…