Receiving a request for evidence and the next steps in your immigration case

What is a request for evidence?

A request for evidence, also known as an RFE, is a notice sent by the immigration services in a response to collect more information about your case. The RFE means an immigration officer has begun to review your case and has found some insufficiency, or missing forms, within your documents. Requests for evidence are sent out in the form of a mailed letter and are sent by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, more commonly known as USCIS.

Why is it important to respond to an RFE?

Within the RFE notice you will be prompted to respond to the officer’s request for additional evidence. You will find details of what deficiencies the officer is specifically requesting; and it is vital to submit a response. By following the officer’s exact directions and issuing a response, your case will continue to process and be reviewed by the immigration officer assigned onto your case. Should you choose to not fulfill a response to the request, or submit the answers too late, there may be damaging and irreversible consequences to your case.

When do I need to respond by?

In the RFE notice you will receive detailed instructions on what you need to complete, where to resubmit and when the response is due by. Keep track of the due date and remember, mailing the evidence takes time and must be mailed before the actual due date to ensure it arrives promptly to the immigration services and is accepted by the office. Mailing documentation with a tracking number is a good way to keep track of forms and asking for the postal services for a receipt gives you a chance to keep as record.

Is receiving an RFE a sign of a bad case?

It is not a bad sign to have an RFE, so don’t automatically jump to conclusions. USCIS sends out many different notices, forms, and letters to applicants throughout the duration of an ongoing case, so there is no room for alarm should you receive an RFE letter. Ultimately, if the immigration services chose to approve, deny, or otherwise had any other notes for your application, they would have sent you a very different letter to begin with. If you are presented with an RFE, the most essential part is to simply respond to the requests.

What do I do after I submit my RFE response back to USCIS?

Once you have drafted your response and provided all the required documents to USCIS, there is nothing to do but simply wait until the field office has received your submission and reviewed the supplemented documents. Wait times vary depending on your case, the field office you are sending your response to and the nature of the application itself.

How do I seek out help if I receive an RFE?

If you have any questions pertaining to an RFE, it is wise to consult with an immigration attorney versed in these matters. There are always an array of requirements for each and every case, letter, notice and document that USCIS requests. If you want a peace of mind throughout the duration of your case, you can consult with and even hire and immigration attorney to represent you in these matters. Immigration attorneys are used to handling all types of cases and situations, and ready to adapt to any new matters that come their way.

Contacting an immigration law office:

You can directly contact the Law Offices of Eugene Mogilevsky by submitting an Online Contact Form at Contact Us | The Law Offices of Eugene Mogilevsky (egmlegal.com) or by calling the office at (317) 743-7958 and scheduling an immigration attorney consultation. We have several highly practiced attorneys to assist you and your case in a variety of ways. Please contact us directly for more information!