USCIS can once again deny certain immigration petitions and applications without first issuing a Request for Evidence (RFE) or Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID). On August 5, 2026, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services issued a new policy alert giving adjudicators broader discretion to decide cases based on the record as filed, even when additional evidence might potentially address a deficiency.

The policy is effective immediately and applies to immigration benefit requests that were pending with USCIS on August 5, 2026, as well as those filed on or after that date, unless a regulation or other controlling authority requires otherwise.

For employers, foreign nationals, and immigration practitioners, the practical consequence is significant: a case that previously might have resulted in an RFE requesting additional documentation may now be denied without another opportunity to supplement the record.

What Changed in the New USCIS RFE Policy?

On August 5, 2026, USCIS issued a new policy alert titled “Evidence, Requests for Evidence, and Notices of Intent to Deny”. The guidance revises Volume 1, Part E, Chapter 6 of the USCIS Policy Manual, which governs evidence and the issuance of RFEs and NOIDs.

Under the revised policy, USCIS officers may deny an immigration benefit request without first issuing an RFE or NOID when the evidence submitted with the filing does not establish eligibility and neither an RFE nor NOID is otherwise required by law, regulation, or other controlling authority.

USCIS described the change as part of an effort to reinforce evidentiary standards and reduce frivolous or insufficiently supported immigration benefit requests.

The important distinction is that an RFE is no longer necessarily the next step when USCIS believes evidence is missing or insufficient. The initial filing may be the applicant’s or petitioner’s only opportunity to establish eligibility before USCIS makes its decision.

Does the New USCIS Policy Apply to Cases That Are Already Pending?

Yes. The August 5, 2026 policy is not limited to new filings.

USCIS states that the policy is effective immediately and applies to benefit requests pending or filed on or after August 5, 2026, unless regulations or other controlling authority provide otherwise.

That means an employer or foreign national who filed a petition or application before August 5 cannot assume that the prior RFE policy will govern the adjudication simply because the case was already pending.

In practical terms, every pending USCIS filing should now be viewed through the lens of whether the evidence already in the record independently establishes each element required for approval.

USCIS RFE Policy Has Swung Back and Forth for More Than a Decade

For more than a decade, USCIS policy on Requests for Evidence and Notices of Intent to Deny has swung back and forth with changes in presidential administrations.

In 2013, USCIS adopted guidance generally favoring the issuance of an RFE when additional evidence could potentially cure a deficiency. Officers were instructed to deny a case without first requesting additional evidence primarily where there was no possibility that additional evidence could establish eligibility.

The first Trump administration reversed that approach in 2018. USCIS Policy Memorandum PM-602-0163, issued on July 13, 2018, gave adjudicators broader discretion to deny petitions and applications without first issuing an RFE or NOID when the evidence initially submitted did not establish eligibility.

The Biden administration reversed course again in 2021, rescinding the 2018 memorandum and generally restoring the principle that USCIS should issue an RFE or NOID when additional evidence could potentially demonstrate eligibility.

Now, USCIS has again shifted toward a denial-first approach, but with a different justification. Rather than focusing primarily on adjudicative efficiency, USCIS is emphasizing evidentiary standards and the need to deter frivolous or inadequately supported immigration benefit requests.

What Happened the Last Time USCIS Could Deny Cases Without an RFE?

When USCIS adopted a similar policy in 2018, immigration practitioners understandably worried that routine evidentiary deficiencies would begin producing immediate denials rather than RFEs.

In employment-based immigration practice, however, that feared result did not materialize as broadly as many practitioners initially expected.

RFEs continued to be common in H-1B, L-1, and other business immigration cases, and many practitioners did not observe a widespread pattern of otherwise approvable cases being denied solely because USCIS chose not to provide an opportunity to submit additional evidence.

Denial rates did increase in several employment-based immigration categories during the first Trump administration. But those increases occurred alongside numerous other changes in USCIS adjudication policy, making it difficult to determine what portion, if any, resulted specifically from the 2018 no-RFE memorandum.

USCIS also does not publish data identifying which cases were denied specifically because an adjudicator exercised the authority to deny without issuing an RFE or NOID.

As a result, the available data cannot establish that the 2018 RFE policy itself caused a significant increase in employment-based immigration denials.

Will the 2026 No-RFE Policy Have a Greater Impact This Time?

Possibly.

There are reasons not to assume that the experience under the 2018 policy will repeat itself in 2026.

During the first Trump administration, adjudicators had authority to deny cases without issuing an RFE, but employment-based practitioners still routinely saw USCIS provide petitioners with an opportunity to respond to perceived deficiencies before denying otherwise viable cases.

The adjudicatory environment surrounding the 2026 policy is different.

Since returning to office, the Trump administration and USCIS have placed increased emphasis on screening and vetting, evidentiary requirements, fraud detection, and discretionary review in immigration benefit adjudications. USCIS has also repeatedly described recent policy changes in terms of protecting the integrity of the immigration system and preventing abuse.

Against that backdrop, petitioners, beneficiaries, and applicants should not assume that the relatively limited practical effect of the 2018 no-RFE policy will necessarily repeat itself. This time, adjudicators may be more willing to use the authority to deny cases outright, particularly where the initial filing leaves an evidentiary gap that previously might have prompted an RFE.

Can USCIS Now Deny an H-1B Petition Without an RFE?

Potentially, yes.

Nothing in the new policy guarantees an H-1B petitioner an RFE merely because additional documentation might address an officer’s concern. If USCIS concludes that the evidence submitted with the petition does not establish eligibility and no law or regulation requires USCIS to provide further notice, the officer may deny the petition based on the existing record.

The same basic concern applies to other employment-based filings, including L-1 petitions, O-1 petitions, employment-based immigrant petitions, adjustment of status applications, and other benefit requests adjudicated by USCIS.

That does not mean USCIS will stop issuing RFEs. RFEs remain part of the adjudication process, and officers retain the ability to request additional evidence. What has changed is that petitioners can no longer safely assume they will receive one before USCIS denies the case.

What Should Employers and Foreign Nationals Do Differently?

The new policy makes the quality of the initial filing more important.

Employers and foreign nationals should approach a USCIS filing as though there may be no second opportunity to fill an evidentiary gap. Each required element of eligibility should be supported by evidence in the original submission, and potential weaknesses that previously might have been addressed after an RFE should be evaluated before the case is filed.

Filers should also carefully review the “Checklist of Required Initial Evidence” on the USCIS webpage for the specific form being filed and confirm that every required document is included with the initial submission. These checklists identify the evidence USCIS expects applicants and petitioners to provide at filing, and under the new policy, omitting required initial evidence creates a greater risk that USCIS will deny the case without first issuing an RFE. Employers, applicants, and petitioners should therefore treat the checklist as a minimum filing standard, while also considering whether additional evidence is necessary to establish each substantive element of eligibility.

For employment-based petitions, that may mean giving greater attention to issues such as whether the offered position satisfies the applicable legal standard, whether the beneficiary possesses the required qualifications, whether the employer has adequately documented the employment relationship or qualifying corporate relationship, and whether all required supporting evidence has been included.

For cases already pending with USCIS, applicants and petitioners should recognize that the August 5 policy applies to them as well.

The Bottom Line

The August 5, 2026 USCIS policy does not mean that RFEs are disappearing. It does mean that receiving an RFE before a denial can no longer be taken for granted.

USCIS officers now have broader discretion to deny immigration petitions and applications based on the evidence submitted with the initial filing, including cases that were already pending when the policy took effect.

The similar 2018 Trump administration policy did not produce the widespread wave of immediate employment-based denials that many practitioners initially feared. But the current adjudicatory environment suggests that applicants and petitioners should be cautious about assuming the same result this time.

For employers and foreign nationals, the safest approach is straightforward: prepare every USCIS filing as though the initial submission may be the only opportunity to establish eligibility.

By: Emily Neumann

Emily Neumann is Managing Partner at Reddy Neumann Brown PC with over 15 years of experience practicing US immigration law providing services to U.S. businesses and multinational corporations. Emily has helped transform the firm from a solo practice to Houston’s largest immigration law firm focused exclusively on U.S. employment-based immigration.  She received her Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Central Michigan University and her Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Houston Law Center. Emily has been quoted in Bloomberg Law, U.S. News & World Report, Inside Higher Ed, and The Times of India on various hot topics in immigration. She is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and Society for Human Resource Management.