Federal Agency Decisions
Federal workers' compensation appeals from the Department of Labor's Employees' Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB), federal-sector labor-relations cases from the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), Longshore Act and Black Lung Benefits Act appeals from the Department of Labor's Benefits Review Board (BRB), precedent decisions of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB), and whistleblower and other labor appeals from the Department of Labor's Administrative Review Board (ARB), each with a plain-English summary, the law it cites, and whether it counts as precedent. More agencies are coming.
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Matter of Torres-Tejeda
Withholding denied for former intelligence chief
A former chief of the Dominican Republic's military intelligence unit sought withholding of deportation to his homeland. He feared that a mob would attack him because of his role under Trujillo and that criminal proceedings against him would be unfair. Applying the physical persecution standard…
Matter of Paul
Deportation order withdrawn pending possible reopening
A longtime permanent resident had been ordered deported for Communist Party membership. The Board reconsidered the record after the Supreme Court's decision in Gastelum-Quinones v. Kennedy . It held that the government had not shown he understood the Party's political nature; evidence of meetings…
Matter of Peterson
Ranch hand position did not qualify for first preference visa
A Nevada cattle ranch sought first preference visa classification for a Spanish worker who fed and cared for its purebred Hereford cattle. The Regional Commissioner found that the ranch owner, rather than the worker, bred the cattle, exhibited them, and kept their pedigree records. The worker's…
Matter of Kobayashi and Doi
Treaty investor employee status denied for restaurant staff
Two Japanese nationals applied to change their immigration status so they could work for a treaty investor's theater restaurant in Honolulu. Kobayashi was to train and supervise entertainers, while Doi was to instruct and supervise wait staff. The district director found that their vaguely…
Matter of Louie
Shortened Navy service did not meet the immigration law's 24-month requirement
A Chinese national entered the United States without inspection after claiming citizenship. He sought suspension of deportation, invoking an exception to the seven-year physical presence rule for people who had served at least 24 months on active duty in the U.S. armed forces. The Navy transferred…
Matter of Monastra
Certificate of citizenship granted despite father's Italian nationality
A woman born in Italy in 1930 applied for a certificate of U.S. citizenship based on her father's U.S. citizenship at her birth. Italian law later conferred Italian nationality on her and her father automatically after he lived in Italy for two years. The district director found that this automatic…
Matter of Ng
Netherlands remained an authorized deportation destination
A Chinese crewman remained in the United States beyond his authorized stay. The immigration officer named the Republic of China on Formosa as the first deportation destination, with the Netherlands and Hong Kong as alternatives. The respondent sought withholding to the Netherlands, arguing that it…
Matter of Pikkarainen
Deportation order upheld after two convictions
A man born out of wedlock in Finland argued that he had derived U.S. citizenship from his mother's naturalization. The Board held that the 1940 law did not give an unlegitimated child citizenship through his mother and that the later law could not help him because he was over 16 when it took…
Matter of HMS Bounty
Separate fines upheld for five discharged crewmen
The HMS Bounty, a replica sailing vessel used to promote a film, arrived in Boston after visiting other U.S. ports. Its agents paid off and discharged five Canadian crewmen there without first obtaining the required immigration permission. The district director assessed a separate $1,000 statutory…
Matter of Rios-Carrillo
Agricultural worker's overstay supported deportation
A Mexican agricultural worker remained in the United States after his authorized stay ended on January 4, 1963. The Board held that his continued presence violated the Agricultural Act and its implementing immigration regulation, making him deportable under section 241(a)(2) of the Immigration and…
Matter of Yaron, et al.
Comedy troupe qualified for first preference visas
A New York theatrical agency petitioned for the four members of the singing and acting comedy troupe The Four Ayalons. The District Director denied first preference classification because he found insufficient evidence of exceptional ability or prospective cultural benefit. On appeal, the Regional…
Matter of Yoo
Four-hour Mexico trip did not restart the deportation clock
A Korean lawful permanent resident made a four-hour sightseeing trip to Mexico in 1959. He was later convicted of first-degree murder, and an immigration officer ordered deportation on a charge requiring the crime to have been committed within five years after entry. The Board applied the Supreme…
Matter of Chien
Waived foreign residence requirement allowed suspension of deportation
A Chinese national entered as a student and later became an exchange visitor. After he overstayed, a special inquiry officer granted him suspension of deportation and certified the case to the Board. The question was whether the statute barred an exchange visitor from that relief even after the…
Matter of R—R—
Waiver granted after border card misrepresentation
A Mexican applicant admitted that he falsely denied intending to work in the United States when he obtained a border crossing card in 1960. A consular officer found him otherwise eligible for a permanent resident visa. The Officer in Charge found evidence of rehabilitation and serious economic…
Matter of Ikle
Waiver application left to district director
A Japanese exchange visitor stayed after his authorized period and sought adjustment to permanent residence. His application for a waiver of the two-year foreign residence requirement was pending with the district director. The Board held that neither it nor the special inquiry officer could decide…
Matter of Saunders
Organized orchard training qualified for trainee visas
A California farmer petitioned to bring Japanese trainees for agricultural instruction, mainly in orcharding. The district director had denied the petition as chiefly unstructured work training. The Regional Commissioner found that the farmer offered daily instruction and demonstrations, close…
Matter of Napello
Proxy marriage did not restore visa eligibility
A U.S. citizen petitioned for nonquota visa status for his second wife. He had obtained a Mexican divorce from his first wife while neither spouse was in Mexico, then married the beneficiary in Washington, D.C. After the immigration service moved to revoke the petition, the petitioner and…
Matter of J—F—D—
Permission to reapply after deportation denied
A British applicant sought permission to reapply for U.S. admission after his 1960 deportation. He challenged the conclusion that his interstate transportation of a stolen vehicle was a crime involving moral turpitude, but the Regional Commissioner cited an earlier Board ruling that it was. The…
Matter of Kyriakarakos
Unauthorized work barred change from visitor to student
A Greek citizen admitted as a visitor for pleasure applied to change to student status. He had begun working as a restaurant busboy before filing that application and continued working several days each week. The Regional Commissioner held that this employment violated his visitor status. Because…
Matter of Duran-Montoya
Existing marriage weighed against adjustment
A Colombian citizen sought adjustment to permanent resident status after entering the United States as a visitor. He had married in a Catholic ceremony in Colombia, later married another person in Florida, and said his first marriage was invalid because it had not been registered in a civil…
Matter of Simicevic
Divorce ended the stepchild relationship for this visa petition
A lawful permanent resident petitioned for third preference immigrant visa status for the son of her former husband. She had married his father when the son was 13, but they divorced before she filed the petition. The son remained in his father's custody, and both former spouses later remarried…
Matter of Amico
Father's compulsory military service did not end citizenship before son's birth
An applicant born in Italy in 1939 sought a certificate of United States citizenship through his father, who was born in New Jersey. His father had sworn allegiance during voluntary Italian army service while still a minor. The decision treated later voluntary confirmation before January 13, 1941…
Matter of Banjeglav
Crewman did not establish likely physical persecution
A Yugoslav crewman remained in the United States after his authorized stay expired. He sought a stay of deportation, arguing that his desertion and political opposition to communism would expose him to physical persecution if returned to Yugoslavia. The Board found that the documented penalties for…
Matter of Yanez-Carrillo
Citizenship retained after prompt return
A man born in Mexico to a U.S. citizen mother learned in 1962 that he might have acquired U.S. citizenship through her. The special inquiry officer found him excludable as an immigrant without proper documents because he had not satisfied the statutory U.S. physical presence requirement. The Board…
Matter of M/S Panaghia Theoskepasti
Vessel agents' fine set aside because the wrong statutory charge was used
Immigration officials denied an alien crewman landing privileges, then allowed the vessel's agents to take him ashore for medical treatment under guard. The crewman escaped on the way to the doctor. The district director imposed a $600 fine on the agents under section 254 of the immigration statute…
Matter of Woo
Military service supported suspension of deportation
A man born in Hong Kong had entered the United States as a child under another person's name and a false claim of citizenship. He later served honorably on active duty in the U.S. Army for more than two years. The Board held that his service exempted him from the usual continuous physical presence…
Matter of Cardenas-Pinedo
Brief family visits did not create a new entry
A lawful permanent resident made brief visits to relatives in Mexico after pleading guilty to a theft charge. Immigration officials argued that his returns to the United States were new entries that supported deportation. Applying Rosenberg v. Fleuti , the Board held that the visits were innocent…
Matter of O'Sullivan
Board leaves termination of deportation proceedings in place
A Canadian nurse faced deportation after a Michigan conviction for unlawful use of narcotic drugs. The trial court later granted her motion for a new trial and dismissed the criminal case. The Service argued that the court had acted only to prevent deportation and had exceeded its authority. The…
Matter of Zavala
Adjustment denied in discretion based on children's circumstances
A widowed Honduran visitor applied to become a permanent resident after entering the United States. Her five minor children remained in Honduras with their paternal grandparents. The district director denied adjustment in discretion, citing the children's need for her care and the lack of a…
Matter of Ghazal
Fraudulent visa did not bar eligibility for adjustment
A Syrian man entered the United States with a nonquota immigrant visa issued under another name after falsely claiming to have been born in Brazil. A special inquiry officer found him ineligible to seek adjustment of status and ordered deportation. The Board held that the fraudulent visa did not…
Matter of Bisulca
Minister visa petition denied for lack of qualifying vocation
A New York pastor petitioned for an Italian beneficiary living in Argentina to serve as an assistant pastor under the nonquota minister provision. The record described the beneficiary's voluntary evangelism and a Certificate of Ministry, but did not establish that he had carried on the vocation of…
Matter of Perez-Jimenez
Deportation order withdrawn during extradition proceedings
A former president of Venezuela faced extradition proceedings while a United States deportation order against him remained outstanding. He sought to reopen deportation proceedings to argue that return to Venezuela would expose him to physical persecution. The immigration service instead asked the…
Matter of Peralta
Military service qualified the applicant for suspension of deportation
A Philippine citizen admitted as a student stopped attending school and became deportable for violating his admission conditions. He sought suspension of deportation although he had not lived in the United States for seven years. The Board held that section 244(b) waived any specified physical…
Matter of Hernandez
Foreign government employment required authenticated legal proof
An applicant who held United States and Mexican citizenship from birth appealed an exclusion order based on an alleged loss of United States nationality. He had worked for a municipal water system in Mexico, and the government claimed that his job was under a foreign government. The Board found the…
Matter of Michigan State University
Temporary research associate qualified for visa classification
Michigan State University sought a visa for a research associate to develop materials for a new Chinese language and literature degree program. The district director denied the petition because the program would be permanent. The Acting Regional Commissioner distinguished the lasting degree program…
Matter of Michigan State University
Visiting mathematics scholar held a temporary teaching role
Michigan State University sought a visa for a distinguished scholar to teach and research mathematics during one academic year. The district director denied the petition because the courses appeared in the university catalogue and the position seemed permanent. The Acting Regional Commissioner…
Matter of Rios-Carrillo
Agricultural worker's deportability required a reopened hearing
The respondent, a Mexican agricultural worker, remained in the United States after the period authorized by his admission. He had also applied to change to another temporary agricultural worker status, but the Service denied that application because it treated him as outside the nonimmigrant…
Matter of Bauer
Minor's compelled travel did not create a new entry
A German citizen admitted for permanent residence traveled with his mother and stepfather to Germany when he was 16 because his stepfather had military orders there. He returned with them to the United States at 19. Immigration officials sought to deport him based on a later criminal conviction…
Matter of Stojkovic
Former Trujillo officer did not establish likely physical persecution
A Dominican national who had served as an officer in the Anti-Communist Foreign Legion under the Trujillo regime sought to stop his deportation to the Dominican Republic. He argued that his former service exposed him to imprisonment, expulsion, and mob violence. The Board found that his earlier…
Matter of Goncalves
Crewman status barred two forms of deportation relief
A Portuguese seaman entered the United States in transit to join another vessel and stayed after his authorized period. He later sought to reopen his deportation case to apply for suspension of deportation and adjustment of status. The Board had refused reopening because the law barred crewmen from…
Matter of Leong
Military service preserved eligibility for suspension of deportation
A Chinese national was deportable after entering the United States on a false claim of citizenship. The special inquiry officer granted him suspension of deportation and certified the order to the Board. The Board found extreme hardship based on his long residence, honorable Army service, service…
Matter of Encarnado
Former exchange visitor denied change to student status
A Philippine nurse entered as an exchange visitor, completed her nursing program, left for Canada, and returned as a temporary visitor. She then applied to change to student status for a nurse anesthetist course. The Acting Regional Commissioner found that she had already received the maximum…
Matter of Paul
Deportation order upheld and belated document request denied
A longtime permanent resident appealed an order finding him deportable because he had been a member of the Communist Party after entering the United States. The Board accepted the testimony of a government witness about meetings, dues, and recruiting activity, finding that the respondent's…
Matter of Wong
Evidence did not establish legitimation for a visa petition
A naturalized United States citizen petitioned for nonquota immigration status for a daughter born outside marriage in China. The District Director denied the petition because the evidence did not show that she had been legitimated and therefore qualified as his child under the immigration statute…
Matter of Koehne
Hungarian divorce supported approval of a spouse petition
A Hungarian permanent resident petitioned for third preference immigration classification for the man she married in New York in 1962. The District Director denied the petition because her previous marriage had ended in a Hungarian divorce while both former spouses lived in New York. The Board held…
Matter of Gardos
Earlier Canadian marihuana conviction supported deportation
A Canadian citizen was convicted in Canada in 1956 of unlawfully possessing marihuana and entered the United States in 1959. An immigration officer ordered him deported under a 1960 amendment that expressly covered such convictions. He argued that the amendment could not apply to convictions from…
Matter of Liadakis
Appeal from denial of deportation withholding dismissed
A Greek citizen who had joined Jehovah's Witnesses in the United States sought withholding of deportation to Greece. He said that his planned religious proselytizing there could lead to arrest and imprisonment. The Board accepted that religious confinement could, in some circumstances, qualify as…
Matter of SS. Ryndam
Attorney General affirms remand of carrier fine case
Holland-America Line brought a passenger to New York with a resident card but no visa. An immigration officer excluded the passenger, and the District Director fined the carrier $1,000. The Board withdrew the fine order and remanded so the carrier could present additional evidence, including…
Matter of Maturana
Spanish nationality defeated citizenship claim
A woman born in Puerto Rico in 1931 to a Spanish father and Cuban mother moved to Spain with her family shortly after birth. She entered Puerto Rico in 1957 with a United States passport, but immigration officials later reopened proceedings after finding her Spanish identity document. The Board…
Matter of Casole
Appeal from denial of admission relief dismissed
An Italian citizen entered the United States on a nonquota immigrant visa issued because he was the unmarried son of a permanent resident. He married in Italy the day after the visa was issued and before entering the United States. He conceded that the marriage made him inadmissible and sought…
Matter of Villagomez-Gasca
Prior deportations did not make concealed history material
A Mexican citizen previously deported from the United States did not disclose those deportations when he applied for an immigrant visa. The immigration service argued that the omission was a material misrepresentation because he had not sought fresh permission to reapply for admission. The Board…
Matter of McCarthy
Deportation suspension approved for Canadian citizen
A Canadian citizen had been deported twice and later returned to the United States without permission. A special inquiry officer suspended his deportation, and the district director sought reconsideration. The question was whether the statutory limit on suspension for natives of countries next to…
Matter of Louie
Deportation suspended for hardship to father and respondent
A Chinese citizen who had remained in the United States after his visitor admission expired appealed the denial of his applications for relief. He sought suspension of deportation under the amended statute's extreme hardship standard. The Board found that deportation would cause hardship to him…
Matter of St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church
Part-time cantor role did not show urgent need
A Greek Orthodox church in New Jersey petitioned for a cantor from Greece. The proposed work covered Sunday and holy-day ceremonies, and the church said the cantor would need other employment to support his family. The Deputy Associate Commissioner found no urgent need under the statute because the…
Matter of Diaz
General mob violence did not establish physical persecution
A Dominican Republic national sought to prevent deportation under the then applicable physical persecution provision. He argued that uncontrolled political unrest could injure him as an innocent bystander, even if government authorities did not authorize the violence. The Board distinguished injury…
Matter of Fong
Crewman ineligible for suspension of deportation
A Chinese citizen who had entered the United States as a crewman appealed the denial of suspension of deportation. While his appeal was pending, Congress amended the suspension statute to lower the hardship threshold for some applicants but expressly excluded people who entered as crewmen. The…
Matter of Flight SR-4
Airline's document fine set aside after visa waiver
Capitol Airways brought a passenger to the United States without a visa or other document valid for admission. Immigration officials paroled her at arrival, and she later received a waiver of the nonimmigrant visa requirement under a published regulation. The district director imposed a $1,000…
Matter of Cruz
Citizenship claim rejected; deportation case remanded
The respondent was born in Saipan in 1933. His father, a noncitizen U.S. national, was born in Guam in 1904 and died before the Organic Act of Guam took effect in 1950. The Board held that the respondent did not obtain U.S. citizenship through his father under that Act: one provision covered…
Matter of Pires Da Silva
Permanent resident ineligible to adjust status again
The respondent had been admitted to the United States as a permanent resident. After two robbery convictions, an immigration officer ordered him deported. He sought adjustment to permanent resident status under section 245 and a waiver of the criminal ground of inadmissibility. The Board held that…
Matter of Palmieri
Adjustment denied after Italian visa quota closed
The respondent, an Italian citizen, stayed in the United States after his visitor admission expired. He applied to adjust his status while the third preference portion of the Italian visa quota was open, but the quota was oversubscribed by the time officials decided his application. The Board held…
What these documents are
- The agencies: Federal workers' compensation appeals from the Department of Labor's Employees' Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB), federal-sector labor-relations cases from the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), Longshore Act and Black Lung Benefits Act appeals from the Department of Labor's Benefits Review Board (BRB), precedent decisions of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB), and whistleblower and other labor appeals from the Department of Labor's Administrative Review Board (ARB). Each decision page names its agency.
- Commission, Board and Authority decisions: Rulings by the agency's highest review level (the Commission at OSHRC and FMSHRC, the Authority at FLRA, the Board of Immigration Appeals, the Administrative Review Board at Labor, and the Environmental Appeals Board at EPA). These are citable as precedent, though a decision may have been appealed to a U.S. Court of Appeals after issuance.
- ALJ decisions: Rulings by the agency's Administrative Law Judges after a hearing. When no Commissioner directs review, an ALJ decision becomes a final order that binds the parties in that case but is not binding precedent: under 29 U.S.C. § 661(j) at OSHRC, and after the 40-day window of 30 U.S.C. § 823(d)(1) at FMSHRC.
- Why finality matters: Every page here says which kind of decision you are reading, so you know whether it is precedent you can cite or a final order that only shows how one judge ruled on one set of facts.
- Where they come from: Every page links the official public release from the deciding agency, and the full text on the page is that release. The plain-English summaries are written by Ezel.