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.
No decisions match these filters
Try fewer or different words, check the spelling, or clear the filters to browse everything.
Matter of Kawasaki
Exchange visitor receives hardship waiver
A Canadian physician working at Washington University sought a waiver of the two-year foreign residence requirement for exchange visitors. The District Director had denied the request, finding that he had not shown exceptional hardship. The physician's U.S. citizen wife provided essential emotional…
Matter of Eng
Family fraud waiver did not erase narcotics conviction
A man admitted for permanent residence had a prior Hong Kong conviction for unlawful possession of heroin. He challenged the conviction in his deportation case and argued that a family based waiver for entry fraud also excused the conviction. The Board held that a challenge to the conviction had to…
Matter of Marcoux
Deportation proceedings remain terminated after job change
A Canadian worker entered the United States with a labor certification for a trainee weaver job in Maine. After five days, he left because he disliked the working conditions and low pay, then took a fiberglass repair job in Connecticut without a new certification. The special inquiry officer…
Matter of Yaldo
Sham marriage supported rescission of immigration status
An Iraqi student obtained permanent resident status after marrying a U.S. citizen. His wife later testified that he said he had married only to stay in the country, and their marriage was annulled. The Board found her account more credible than his claim that he had left because she was unfaithful…
Matter of King and Fields
Virgin Islands visa waiver did not cover travel to the mainland
Two Trinidadian women entered the Virgin Islands using a visa waiver and traveled to New York the same day. The waiver permitted a temporary stay in the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, or agricultural work in the United States. The Board held that it did not authorize the women's immediate travel to…
Matter of Javier
Adjustment denied without labor certification
A Philippine citizen in deportation proceedings sought permanent residence as an airplane mechanic and asked to end the proceedings so he could petition for naturalization based on wartime military service. The Board held that his adjustment application could not be approved because the required…
Matter of Allison
Visa petition approved after Oklahoma recognized divorce
A U.S. citizen petitioned for immediate relative status for his wife, a citizen of the Philippines. The officer in charge revoked the petition's approval because neither party had appeared in the Mexican court that granted the petitioner's earlier divorce. The petitioner presented a decree from an…
Matter of Lavoie
Board upheld deportation under a former exclusion rule
A Canadian permanent resident appealed a deportation order after a court sent his case back for review under a stricter evidence standard. The Board applied the exclusion rule and Supreme Court precedent then in force, which treated homosexuality as a ground for exclusion at entry. It found his…
Matter of Klein
No job opening did not void an immigrant's labor certification
An immigrant entered with a labor certification for an automobile mechanic position at Harbor Motors, but the employer had no opening when he arrived. He later worked for another employer as a mechanic and remained willing to take the certified job if offered. The Board found that he was qualified…
Matter of Shaughnessy
Hardship to the applicant cannot support a section 212(h) waiver
A young permanent resident faced deportation after several Massachusetts criminal convictions. An immigration officer granted him a waiver of criminal inadmissibility and adjusted his status, reasoning that his parents might need his financial support if their health declined. On the Service's…
Matter of Gonzalez de Lara
Suspended sentence did not erase a Texas marijuana conviction
A Mexican immigrant challenged a deportation order based on his Texas marijuana possession conviction. He argued that he acquired citizenship through his United States born mother and that his conviction was not final because the court suspended his sentence and granted probation. The Board found…
Matter of Janus and Janek
Adjustment granted to one respondent and deportation withheld for two
Three Czechoslovak respondents appealed rulings that found them deportable and denied further relief. The Board granted Frantisek Janus permanent resident status, subject to routine processing, because his visitor entry was not a way around the visa process and his family and circumstances favored…
Matter of Anunciacion
Officer could name the Philippines without advance acceptance inquiry
A Filipino exchange visitor remained in the United States after her authorized stay ended. An immigration officer granted voluntary departure and named the Philippines as the destination if deportation became necessary. On appeal, she argued that the officer should first have asked whether the…
Matter of University of California
Visiting geologist petition approved
The University of California petitioned to bring geologist Brian H. Baker to the United States to conduct faculty seminars on the East African rift system. The District Director found that his specialized knowledge and geology work in Kenya met the distinguished merit and ability requirement. He…
Matter of Continental Casualty Company
Maintenance and departure bond canceled
Continental Casualty Company sought cancellation of a $500 maintenance of status and departure bond posted for a nonimmigrant visitor. After her extension request was denied, a private bill was introduced on her behalf before her authorized departure period expired, and a congressional committee…
Matter of Ptasi
Stabbing manslaughter involved moral turpitude
An Italian national appealed a deportation order based on Connecticut convictions for assault with a dangerous weapon and manslaughter by stabbing. The Board held that assault with a dangerous weapon involved moral turpitude under an earlier decision applying the same Connecticut statute. It also…
Matter of Sun
Unsettled petitioner could not offer permanent domestic employment
A petitioner sought sixth preference classification for his mother to work as a live-in domestic worker. The petitioner had an outstanding deportation order, so the Regional Commissioner found that his immigration status was temporary and unsettled. Because the offered household position therefore…
Matter of Ancheta
Medical records librarian role did not qualify as a profession
A petitioner sought third preference classification to work as a medical records librarian. She held a business administration bachelor's degree, an associate degree in medical records, and accreditation as a record technician. The Regional Commissioner found that the occupation's usual entry…
Matter of Galtieri
Former youth party member qualified for defector status
An Italian student who overstayed his authorized period sought defector status and adjustment to permanent residence. He had joined the Italian Communist Youth Federation at age 18, left it in 1953, and later disclosed that membership to a United States consul. The Board held that his offer to…
Matter of Bronx Municipal Hospital Center
Psychiatry residency was productive employment
A hospital and medical college sought industrial trainee classification for a Canadian physician entering a three-year psychiatry residency. The Regional Commissioner found that the residency involved substantial responsibility for patient care and was primarily productive hospital employment. The…
Matter of Abreu-Semino
LSD offenses did not establish moral turpitude under the charged law
A Cuban permanent resident had been convicted of unlawful sale and possession of LSD under federal law. The special inquiry officer terminated the deportation case because the crimes did not involve moral turpitude, and the case reached the Board on certification. The Board read the drug provisions…
Matter of Piedra
Entry on January 1, 1959 did not meet Cuban adjustment cutoff
A Cuban couple and their son applied to adjust their status under the Act of November 2, 1966. They had been inspected and admitted to the United States on January 1, 1959. The Regional Commissioner held that the statute required inspection and admission or parole subsequent to that date. Later…
Matter of Pajarillo
Hawaiian divorce recognized for immigration purposes
A lawful permanent resident of the United States had divorced his first wife in Hawaii and later married the beneficiary in the Philippines. The American vice consul questioned whether the second marriage was valid because Philippine law did not recognize divorce, and the petitioner had described…
Matter of Nassiri
Hardship waiver granted for exchange visitor's family
An Iranian physician who had entered as an exchange visitor sought a waiver of the two-year foreign residence requirement. He lived in Canada with his United States citizen wife and two children. The Deputy Associate Commissioner found that a move to Iran or a separation would impose exceptional…
Matter of Chong
Foreign residence waiver granted for exceptional hardship
A Malaysian exchange visitor sought a waiver of the two-year foreign residence requirement after marrying a United States citizen. His wife was studying for a master's degree in English and depended on him for support. The District Director found that requiring her to accompany him to Malaysia…
Matter of Yue
Informal infant adoption established eligibility despite later formal decree
A lawful permanent resident petitioned for his adopted daughter, but the District Director denied the petition because the formal Hong Kong adoption decree was too recent to satisfy the two-year custody requirement. The Board examined the family's evidence of an earlier informal adoption under…
Matter of Cevallos
Municipal offenses without a pardon route did not support deportation
The Service sought to deport three permanent residents based on municipal shoplifting convictions in Florida. Special inquiry officers terminated the proceedings, and the Service sought Board review. The Board found that neither the municipal mayors nor the state Pardon Board could pardon these…
Matter of Wong
False citizenship claim defeated inspection requirement
A Chinese national sought adjustment of status after entering the United States on a false claim of citizenship. The Board held that a person who knowingly claims to be a United States citizen to gain entry has not been “inspected and admitted” as required by section 245. The Board found that the…
Matter of Tayeb
Adjustment denied after Libyan scholarship obligations
A Libyan student who had received a government scholarship sought permanent resident status after deciding not to return to Libya and marrying a United States citizen. The Board found no evidence that Libya accepted his offer to repay the scholarship and considered the State Department's view that…
Matter of Smith
Staffing agency's permanent secretary position qualified for sixth preference
A staffing agency sought sixth preference classification for a secretary it would assign to client firms. Although individual client assignments were temporary, the agency guaranteed the beneficiary full-time work for 52 weeks a year and paid her directly with fringe benefits. The District Director…
Matter of Romano
Live-in maid preference petition denied
A petitioner sought preference immigrant classification for his mother, whom he proposed to employ as a live-in maid. The Regional Commissioner found the evidence insufficient to show that she could perform the required household work and childcare, that the petitioner could pay the certified wage…
Matter of Lugo-Guadiana
Board reverses termination and orders deportation
The Immigration Service appealed a special inquiry officer's termination of deportation proceedings against a respondent who claimed United States birth. The Board considered a Mexican birth certificate, the respondent's prior admissions that he was born in Mexico, and testimony from relatives…
Matter of Wong
Board affirms suspension of deportation
The respondent appealed the denial of his application for a record of lawful admission after a special inquiry officer granted suspension of deportation. The Board held that a 1947 guilty plea to unlawful opium possession remained a conviction for immigration purposes even though a California court…
Matter of Cheung
Visa preference revocation affirmed
A United States citizen sought fifth preference visa classification for a woman he identified as his sister. The District Director revoked conditional approval after conflicting accounts of her parentage and insufficient proof of the claimed sibling relationship. The Board held that the petitioner…
Matter of Lam
Reopening denied
A crewman who overstayed his admission had designated Hong Kong as his destination if deported. After failing to leave under a voluntary departure order, he asked to reopen his case so he could withdraw that designation or seek temporary withholding of deportation to Hong Kong. The Board found that…
Matter of Cruz-Gastelum
Deportation order affirmed
A Mexican citizen, who had lived in the United States since childhood, argued that his admission as a citizen in 1948 should count as lawful permanent residence. The Board found that no record of that admission existed, so the regulatory presumption of lawful admission did not apply. His documented…
Matter of Stevens
Adjustment denied without a current labor certification
A British visitor applied to adjust her status to permanent residence using a labor certification obtained for domestic work with a particular employer. That employer had let her go and sought to withdraw the supporting form. The Board held that the certification was no longer valid and that she…
Matter of Martinez-Monteagudo
Uninspected last entry barred Cuban adjustment
A Cuban applicant sought permanent resident status under the Act of November 2, 1966. Although he had been inspected and admitted as a visitor several times after January 1, 1959, his last entry in 1961 was without inspection. The Regional Commissioner held that the Act required him to be in the…
Matter of Tam
Visa petition denied after late adoption ratification
A United States citizen sought visa preference status for a man he had long believed was his natural son. Blood tests and his wife's account showed that she had taken in the child in China while the petitioner was away. The petitioner first learned this in 1967, when the beneficiary was about 28…
Matter of Ching
Suspension of deportation affirmed
A Chinese crewman was found deportable for entering without an immigration visa and returning within a year of an earlier deportation. The Board considered whether his earlier narcotics convictions required his suspension request to be judged under the more restrictive provision of former…
Matter of West
Fraud waiver rejected, case remanded
A Korean visitor received permanent resident status based on a marriage later found insufficient to support adjustment. After that status was rescinded, she faced deportation for remaining longer than her visitor admission allowed. The special inquiry officer ended the case under a waiver for…
Matter of Boghdadi
Claimed adoption did not establish sibling preference
A United States citizen sought fifth preference classification for his stepbrother, claiming that the petitioner's father had adopted him when he married the beneficiary's mother in Egypt. Family affidavits described the beneficiary as a son in the household, but the claimed marriage contract and…
Matter of Masson
Adjustment of status approved
A man born in Cuba had lived in Haiti from childhood and was a Haitian citizen. He entered the United States as a visitor in 1964 and later applied for permanent residence under the Act of November 2, 1966. The Board held that the statute covered a native or citizen of Cuba who met its stated…
Matter of Perez
Journalist qualified for third preference classification
A Philippine journalist sought third preference immigrant classification as a member of the professions. He held a bachelor's degree with a journalism major and had worked for more than three years as a government information writer. The Department of Labor issued the required labor certification…
Matter of Maher
Foreign trained dentist qualified as a professional
A dentist trained in the United Arab Republic sought third preference immigrant classification as a member of the professions. The District Director denied the petition because the dentist needed more study before he could practice in the United States. The Regional Commissioner held that a foreign…
Matter of Yam
Warrantless arrest and evidence upheld
Immigration investigators questioned a restaurant operator who produced documents bearing different names. He challenged his arrest without a warrant and sought to suppress the documents and the affidavit taken afterward. The Board held that the conflicting documents gave the investigator reason to…
Matter of Peterson
Marriage recognized despite separate bedrooms
A United States citizen petitioned for immediate relative status for his wife, a citizen of Iran. The District Director doubted their marriage because they slept in separate rooms and the husband said he married partly to have a housekeeper. The Board found that the couple had entered a valid…
Matter of Lim
Fraud waiver did not cover innocent visa error
A woman entered as the spouse of a person believed to be a United States citizen. Her husband was not a citizen, so she was ineligible for the visa status she received, but the Service did not claim that she knew this or committed fraud. The special inquiry officer terminated deportation…
Matter of Hanna
Ceramic engineer qualified for third preference classification
A ceramic engineer from the United Arab Republic sought third preference classification as a member of the professions. He held a baccalaureate degree in ceramic engineering and had more than five years of experience in that field. The District Director treated ceramic engineering as a…
Matter of Soares
Stepchild petition denied without a family relationship
A United States citizen petitioned for immediate relative status for her husband's son, who was born to another woman before their marriage. The son had always lived with his birth mother in Portugal and had never been part of the petitioner's household. The District Director granted the petition…
Matter of Riva
Deportation hearing need not decide future admissibility
A Peruvian national conceded that he had remained in the United States beyond his authorized stay. He received voluntary departure but asked the special inquiry officer to decide whether his earlier efforts to avoid military service would make him inadmissible if he sought a visa abroad. The…
Matter of Leveque
Changed labor certification rule controlled pending application
A French visitor who remained beyond her authorized stay applied for adjustment of status in May 1965. Before the application was decided, a new law required a labor certification that she could not obtain. She argued that the Service's investigation delayed her case and that the special inquiry…
Matter of Weindl
Commuter who left to avoid draft remains excludable
An Austrian permanent resident worked in the United States while living in Canada as a commuter. After his draft deferment ended, he gave up that status and took work in Canada. He testified that he left partly because he did not want to serve while the Vietnam conflict continued. The Board found…
Matter of Winter
Guilty pleas without final convictions did not support deportation
A British lawful permanent resident faced deportation after pleading guilty to Massachusetts larceny charges. The state court imposed no sentence and placed the cases on file. After he left and reentered the United States, the Service argued that his guilty pleas counted as admissions of crimes…
Matter of Wolf
Three years of discretionary readmission after business trips
A permanent resident barred from citizenship because he had obtained relief from military service on grounds of alienage sought permission to make frequent business trips abroad and return to the United States. The District Director denied his request for unlimited permission. The Board agreed that…
Matter of Vanisi
Service may reopen pending adjustment case
A visitor from Tonga received a conditional order granting adjustment of status, pending a quota number. The Service later moved to reopen the case with a consular report indicating that she had married before entering and had described herself as unmarried on her application. A clerical delay had…
Matter of Chen
Restaurant investigation supported crewman’s deportation order
Immigration officers investigating a restaurant questioned a Chinese crewman who had stayed beyond his permitted period. The restaurant owner consented to the investigation, and the officers arrested him after he tried to flee and could not show lawful status. The Board held that the officers’…
Matter of Wu
Community guild could petition for a physician it would not pay directly
The Darrington Hospital Guild sought sixth preference classification for a physician to serve a community without a local doctor. The Guild would provide a medical facility, while patients would pay the physician directly. The District Director held that the Guild's plan to use the physician's…
Matter of Kotur
Conditional entrant could not yet petition for spouse
A Yugoslavian conditional entrant sought second preference immigrant status for his wife. The District Director denied the petition because the husband had not yet been admitted for permanent residence. The Board found that two years had not elapsed since his conditional entry and that his status…
Matter of Nagy
Set-aside youth conviction cannot support deportation charge
A Hungarian lawful permanent resident faced deportation based on two convictions for crimes involving moral turpitude. His conviction for transporting a stolen vehicle had been set aside under the Federal Youth Corrections Act, and the Youth Correction Division issued a certificate recording that…
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.