Finally, some clarity from USCIS on a long standing issue.

USCIS recently announced that they are updating the USCIS Policy Manual to address situations when the last day to file a benefit request or respond to a USCIS action falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or federal holiday. In these situations, USCIS will consider a filing or response submitted on paper timely if they receive it by the end of the next business day.

Our practice has always been to try and get the response filed before the due date. However, if the due date fell on a weekend and we were responding at the last minute (not our preferred practice!) then we would ensure that the response arrived at USCIS by Friday. Although it was generally accepted that the following business day would not be a problem USCIS had never updated its policy manual on this, at least until now.

USCIS states that it is pursuing several ways to increase flexibility related to filing deadlines, including this Policy Manual update. This update is effective immediately and applies to response received on or after March 29, 2023.

Due to COVID, USCIS had previously allowed Petitioners and Applicants an additional 60 days to respond to certain requests such as a Request for Evidence (RFE) and Notices of Intent to Deny (NOID). However, on March 23, 2023, USCIS announced that this flexibility was coming to an end and that going forward all notices and/or requests from USCIS dated after March 23, 2023, must be responded to by the deadline listed on the notice/request.

If you have any questions regarding the above, please do not hesitate to contact PLG Partner at cprescott@patellegal.com.