USCIS Extends RFE, NOID, and Administrative Appeal Response Deadlines

Topics: Immigration

When a USCIS officer adjudicating an immigration benefit application or petition has questions, the officer will issue a Request for Evidence or RFE.  When an officer intends to deny an application or petition and seeks argument challenging the denial in advance of issuance, the officer will issue a Notice of Intent to Deny or NOID.  Immigration regulations give petitioners and applicants 84 days to respond to an RFE, 33 days to respond to a NOID, and 33 days to file a Notice of Appeal of a denied application or petition.

In response to the COVID-19 global pandemic, USCIS has granted petitioners and applicants an additional 60 days to respond to RFEs, NOIDS issued from March 1, 2020 to July 31, 2020.  Additionally petitioners and applicants have an additional 60 days to file a Notice of Appeal for benefit applications denied between March 1^st and July 31^st 2020.  Petitioners and applicants now have 104 days to respond to an RFE and 93 days to file a response to a NOID or file a Notice of Appeal.  

Just because USCIS grants additional time to respond, it is not necessarily a good idea to utilize it.  Immigration benefit applications are time-sensitive.  A final decision will not be rendered until either the officer receives a response or the now newly extended deadline runs.  Foreign nationals whose underlying status expires before the RFE or NOID response is filed will have significantly fewer options if their application or petition is denied. 

Additionally, employment-based immigrants face a significant amount of stress from the immigration adjudication system.  Their right to remain in the United States rests on this application or petition that is now the subject of the immigration officer’s scrutiny.  No matter how benign or banal the officer’s questions are, the mere fact that an RFE has been issued raises the employee immigrant’s stress level.  Unlike the stress brought on society by COVID-19, this stress can be mitigated by replying to the officer’s concerns.  By prolonging the response, the productivity and well-being of the employee will be affected.  Tending to the officer’s concerns removes a stressor from the employee’s mind and brings a resolution to the petition or application faster.