On April 22, 2025, AP News published an article with remarks made by USCIS spokesman, Matthew Tragesser, in which he mentioned that the increased screening for foreign nationals via data collection was a result of the Trump Administration’s efforts to “promote national security and public safety.”
On 5/1/2025, USCIS responded to American Immigration Lawyers Association’s (AILA) inquiry stating that the collecting beneficiary information and biometric data is a necessary part of USCIS’s efforts to promote national security and public safety and to mitigate fraud by conducting screening and vetting in all immigration programs and the agency is proud to be returning to this important work.”
In response to AILA’s inquiry regarding information that has already been collected from information provided in the form itself, USCIS provided the below response.
“Even if an address is provided on Form I-140, an Request for Evidence (RFE) can be issued for the beneficiary’s address if the adjudicating officer believes there is a need to re-confirm the address is accurate and has not changed.”
In summary, while the information being requested on RFEs may appear duplicative, RFEs must still be responded to in order to prevent any application or petition denials.
What is government trying to do?
The administration of President Trump has been enacting new policies and procedure to increase the vetting of the immigration applications and benefits requests. Under the current legal authority, the government appears to utilize every opportunity to dots the i’s and crosses the t’s.
While the the adverse information may not necessarily disqualify an H-1B or I-140 petition, but it could question the eligibility for a visa or the benefit requests for the particular Beneficiary of the H-1B or I-140 petition.
Is this significant and what implications can it have for the employers?
Every RFE has to responded and addressed properly, a failure to do so could lead to a denial unless it is overcomed in a Motions or Appeals process. Typically, RFE raised various legal and factual questions and those have to be adequately addressed to receive an affirmative decision.
What H-1B or I-140 Petitioners could do?
The petitioner could seek legal counsel to understand the implications of the RFE, questions asked, and prepare documentation for the RFE response.
It is also important for responsible HR and legal team within the organization to learn about the RFE and its contents for employers to undertake some procedural changes or foresee future inquiries from the government.
Note: This is a blog post by Adhikari Law PLLC as an informational purpouse only and should NOT be construed as a legal advice.
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