DOSSIER · IMM

Refusals & Revocations

What happens when a visa is refused, revoked, or a visa-free entry goes wrong — and what can be done next.

Brief stack

In this dossier

IMM-15 · 01

Employment Authorisation Documents: Categories, Renewals, and Gaps

8 MIN · IMM

The two characters printed in the category box decide almost everything about an employment authorisation document. This brief explains what each family of categories means and how renewals go wrong.

An employment authorisation document is proof of permission to work; it is not immigration status and it does not extend the status underneath it.
The category code printed on the card determines eligibility, renewal timing, and whether an automatic extension applies when a renewal is filed.
Automatic extension on timely renewal covers only listed categories filed in the same category, and its length has been changed by rulemaking more than once.

Read the full brief →

IMM-16 · 02

Section 214(b) Refusals: Why Nonimmigrant Visas Are Denied and What Follows

7 MIN · IMM

The most common visa refusal is not a finding of wrongdoing. It is a finding that the applicant did not rebut a statutory presumption, and it can only be answered by applying again on different facts.

Section 214(b) presumes every nonimmigrant applicant intends to immigrate; the applicant carries the burden of overcoming that presumption at interview.
A 214(b) refusal is not a ban, a fraud finding, or a permanent ineligibility — but it is recorded and visible to officers at later applications.
There is no appeal and no formal reconsideration; the only route is a new application supported by materially changed circumstances.

Read the full brief →

IMM-17 · 03

Visa Revocation: Prudential Revocation, Notice, and Consequences

8 MIN · IMM

A visa can be withdrawn after it is issued, sometimes without meaningful notice. This brief explains the discretionary power behind revocation, the prudential variety, and what the holder can actually do about it.

INA 221(i) lets a consular officer or the Department revoke a visa at any time, in its discretion, after issuance.
Prudential revocation is used when information surfaces suggesting a possible ineligibility that has not yet been formally adjudicated.
A revoked visa cannot be used to travel; boarding may be refused abroad or admission refused at the port of entry.

Read the full brief →

IMM-18 · 04

The Visa Waiver Programme and ESTA: Limits Travellers Underestimate

7 MIN · IMM

Travelling without a visa is convenient and expensive in rights. This brief sets out what the programme requires, what it forbids, and what a traveller gives up at the moment of entry.

Travel under the programme requires an approved electronic travel authorisation obtained before boarding; approval is permission to travel, not a guarantee of admission.
Admission is capped at 90 days and generally cannot be extended, and time spent in Canada, Mexico, or adjacent islands normally counts toward it.
Programme entrants generally cannot change to another nonimmigrant status, and adjustment to residence is restricted with a narrow immediate-relative exception.

Read the full brief →

IMM-19 · 05

Visitor Status: Extensions, Change of Status, and Overstay Risk

7 MIN · IMM

The date that governs a visitor's stay is on the admission record, not the visa. This brief covers extending that date, changing category from inside the country, and the cost of getting the timing wrong.

The admission record, not the visa expiry date, sets how long a visitor may remain; the visa only controls travel to the border.
Requests to extend or change status are filed on Form I-539 and must be received before the authorised stay expires.
A timely, non-frivolous request generally suspends the accrual of unlawful presence while it is pending, with accrual resuming on denial.

Read the full brief →