Immigration Benefits in EOIR Proceedings
ALERT: If you are currently in EOIR proceedings please refer to revised pre-order instructions on biometrics collection for Form I-589 applicants. All I-589 applicants in EOIR proceedings must refer to the 12/16/2024 revised pre-order instructions that may be found here: Instructions for Submitting Certain Applications in Immigration Court and For Providing Biometric and Biographic Information to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. These instructions provide that I-589 applicants will no longer need to mail USCIS information to complete their biometrics collection.
Alert: We have recently received many incorrect payments for biometrics services when applicants file U.S. Department of Justice forms EOIR 40, EOIR 42A, and EOIR 42B. We must reject these forms if the payments are incorrect. The fee is no longer $85. As of April 1, 2024, the biometric services fee for these forms is $30. See the EOIR Forms page on the Department of Justice website for the required fees for all EOIR forms.
Alert: USCIS Announces Updates to the Post-Order Instructions for Individuals Granted Relief or Protection from Removal by Immigration Court
We are updating the instructions for people who were granted relief or protection from removal by an immigration judge or by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA). In most cases, we will create and mail your Permanent Residence Card (also known as a Green Card) or documentation of asylum to you after the decision by an immigration judge or the BIA granting you lawful permanent resident status or asylum becomes final. We typically can provide this documentation without any additional action on your part, such as the need to appear in-person at a field office. Please wait at least 45 days after your order from the immigration judge or BIA becomes final before you contact the USCIS Contact Center, which should give us enough time to process and mail your documentation to the address you provided to the court. If you have moved since a final decision was made by an immigration judge or the BIA on your case, please refer to the detailed information about how to change an address on the How to Change Your Address page.
For more information, please see Notice to Individuals Granted Immigration Benefits by Immigration Judge or Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA).
The information on this page applies only to individuals who are requesting, or who have been granted, relief or protection from removal while they are in proceedings in an immigration court or before the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA). Immigration courts and the BIA are part of the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) in the U.S. Department of Justice.
Certain people in proceedings before an immigration court can apply for relief from removal, such as adjustment of status to that of a lawful permanent resident, cancellation of removal, and certain waivers of inadmissibility. Other people may also may seek protection from removal, such as asylum or withholding of removal.
If you are filing an application for relief or protection from removal before an immigration court, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) government’s attorney should provide you with Instructions for Submitting Certain Applications in Immigration Court and For Providing Biometric and Biographic Information to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (Pre-Order Instructions). You must follow these instructions carefully to have your application adjudicated in immigration court.
Before the EOIR can grant relief or protection from removal, identity, security, and background checks must be completed. If you are scheduled for a biometric services appointment at a USCIS Application Support Center (ASC), you must carefully follow the instructions on the appointment notice for completing all necessary biometrics requirements.
If the immigration judge grants your application for relief or protection from removal, you should receive Post-Order Instructions for Individuals Granted Relief or Protection from Removal by Immigration Court at the end of the removal proceedings. These instructions describe the steps you should follow to obtain documentation of your immigration status and employment authorization. If the BIA grants you relief or protection from removal, your BIA decision should contain similar instructions for obtaining your documentation.
If you have been granted lawful permanent resident status during proceedings before an immigration judge or the BIA and that decision is administratively final, you will receive a Permanent Resident Card (also known as a Green Card). If you have been granted asylum and that decision is administratively final, you will receive a Form I-94, Arrival/Departure Record with an asylum stamp. If 45 days have passed since the decision granting you relief or protection from removal became administratively final and you have not yet received documentation of your status, please call the USCIS Contact Center at 800-375-5283 (TTY 800-767-1833) to request that documentation. You must tell us:
- Your full name;
- Your A-Number;
- Your date of birth;
- Your address;
- The date of your order from the immigration judge or the BIA;
- The specific immigration benefit you received (for example, adjustment of status, cancellation of removal, or asylum); and
- Whether your order is final.
Without this information, we may not be able to respond fully to your inquiry. We will review your request and will either mail your documents or schedule you for an in-person appointment at your local field office, if necessary.
If EOIR ended your removal proceedings so that USCIS can adjudicate your Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, the assigned ICE attorney should forward your A-File to the appropriate USCIS office to adjudicate of your adjustment application. You may also call the USCIS Contact Center to request that we:
- Reopen a Form I-485 you previously filed with us and that we administratively closed due to lack of jurisdiction; and
- Transfer to USCIS a Form I-485 you initially filed with EOIR so that we can adjudicate your application. If you followed the pre-order instructions noted above and filed Form I-485 with EOIR, you should not “refile" Form I-485 with the USCIS Lockbox.
When we receive your request, our Contact Center staff will verify that removal proceedings are terminated and then will send your request to the USCIS field office that has jurisdiction over your case. We may also send you a Request for Evidence to obtain a copy of your Form I-485 and other supporting documents if these documents are not in your A-File.
If you have moved since a final decision was made by an immigration judge or the BIA on your case, please refer to the detailed information about How to Change Your Address with USCIS.
Effective December 16, 2024, if you are in proceedings in immigration court, do not mail a copy of the first three pages of your Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal. DHS will automatically initiate security and background checks based on the Form I-589 you filed with the immigration court.
If DHS does not have your biometrics on file, you will receive a notice at your address of record with the immigration court to attend a biometric services appointment at a USCIS Application Support Center (ASC).
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What if I already sent the first three pages of my Form I-589 to USCIS?
A. No additional action is needed.
If DHS does not have your biometrics on file, USCIS will mail a biometric services appointment notice to you at the address on record with the immigration court. If you move, you are required to update your address with the immigration court using Form EOIR-33, Change of Address/Contact Information.
Q. What should I do if I already filed my Form I-589 with the immigration court, but I did not yet mail the first three pages of my Form I-589 to USCIS?
A. Do not mail the first three pages of your Form I-589 to USCIS. DHS will initiate the required security and background checks automatically based on the Form I-589 you filed with the immigration court. If DHS does not have your biometrics on file, USCIS will mail a biometric services appointment to you at the address on record with the immigration court. If you move, you are required to update your address with the immigration court using Form EOIR-33.
Q. What will USCIS do with paper copies of the first three pages of Form I-589 that were sent to USCIS?
A. USCIS will hold the paper copies of the first three pages of Form I-589 for six months from date of receipt. After six months, the paper copies will be destroyed in accordance with applicable procedures.
Q. If I need biometrics collected, how will I get my ASC appointment notice?
A. You will receive an ASC appointment notice by mail at the address that you provided to the immigration court. If you move, you are required to update your address with the immigration court using Form EOIR-33.
Q. When should I call the USCIS Contact Center?
A. You should call the USCIS Contact Center at 800-375-5283 if:
- You received a biometrics appointment notice, but need to reschedule your appointment and cannot use the online biometric services appointment rescheduling tool;
- You were instructed during your immigration court appearance that you need to submit biometrics in your case but have not received an ASC appointment; and
- You have waited three months since filing your Form I-589 with the immigration court or have a date for your merits hearing scheduled within six months.
Do not contact a USCIS Asylum Office about the status of your biometrics appointment.
Q. Why do I need to wait 3 months after filing my Form I-589 with the immigration court or until I have a merits hearing scheduled within 6 months before calling the USCIS Contact Center?
A. The immigration court staff manually enter information from each Form I-589 into their electronic systems. The three-month window gives immigration court staff enough time to enter information from your Form I-589 into the immigration court system.
Q. What should I do if the immigration judge tells me I need my biometrics collected, but the USCIS Contact Center says I do not need a biometric services appointment?
A. Please notify the immigration court that the USCIS Contact Center said biometrics do not need to be submitted in your case. You may not appear at an ASC without a scheduled biometric services appointment.
Q. How do I update my mailing address if I moved after I filed my Form I-589 with the immigration court?
A. If you move, you are required to update your address with the immigration court using Form EOIR-33, and serve the Form on the appropriate U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Office of the Principal Legal Advisor Field Location as instructed on the Form. You must submit Form EOIR-33 for each individual who has a case pending in immigration court and is affected by the change of address.