USCIS Accused of Blocking Access to Immigration Records

A new whistleblower report has raised serious concerns about how U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is handling requests for immigration records under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). According to the report, the agency has implemented internal practices that effectively limit immigrants’ access to their own files despite a federal court order requiring timely disclosure.

The report, published by Government Executive and shared with members of Congress, alleges that USCIS has been rejecting a significant number of requests for Alien Files, commonly known as A-Files, not because the requests are invalid, but as a way to reduce the number of cases counted toward its FOIA processing obligations.

Why A-Files Matter
An A-File contains a person’s complete immigration history and is often critical in immigration cases, especially for individuals facing removal proceedings. Unlike criminal cases, immigration courts do not automatically provide noncitizens with their records. The only way to obtain them is through a FOIA request to USCIS.

Delays or denials in accessing these records can prevent immigrants from applying for benefits, responding to allegations, or properly defending themselves in court.

The Court Order USCIS Was Required to Follow
In Nightingale v. USCIS, a lawsuit filed in 2019 by immigration attorneys and advocacy organizations, the federal court ordered USCIS to comply with FOIA’s statutory deadlines generally 20 business days, or 30 days in limited circumstances.

In December 2020, Judge William Orrick of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, requiring USCIS to substantially comply with FOIA timelines and submit regular compliance reports to the court.

For a time, USCIS reported processing roughly 90% of A-File requests within the required deadlines.

A Sudden Spike in “Compliance”
More recently, USCIS claimed that it processed over 99% of A-File FOIA requests on time even during periods that included a government shutdown and staffing reductions.

The whistleblower report explains how that number may have been achieved.

Beginning in March 2024, USCIS allegedly introduced a series of internal changes that led to mass rejections of FOIA requests, allowing the agency to reduce the number of cases it officially “processed.”

Practices Allegedly Used to Reject FOIA Requests
According to the whistleblower, USCIS implemented several tactics:

Excessive redactions, including entire pages even when documents contained information originally provided by the requester, such as birth certificates.

Withholding critical enforcement documents, including Form I-213, which often contains key details about how and why a person was arrested.

Rejecting requests over minor discrepancies, such as small differences in optional information (for example, variations in parents’ last names).

Refusing attorney office addresses, a common and necessary practice used to protect vulnerable clients, including victims of domestic violence and special immigrant juveniles.

In many cases, USCIS allegedly rejected requests even after locating the correct A-File, choosing closure over disclosure.

Lack of Transparency
None of these policy changes were publicly announced. Requesters were not warned, given guidance, or allowed to correct minor issues. Instead, requests were simply closed.

The whistleblower report claims these changes were implemented specifically to avoid compliance with the court’s reporting requirements and to create the appearance of meeting FOIA deadlines.

Broader Implications for Due Process
If accurate, these practices raise serious due process concerns. Without timely access to their immigration records, individuals may be unable to: prepare applications, respond to allegations or meaningfully defend themselves in immigration court.

Delays can also clog immigration court dockets, as attorneys are forced to request continuances while waiting for records that should have been provided by law.

Accountability Still Unanswered
Advocacy organizations have since filed FOIA requests seeking records about USCIS’s internal policy changes. As of now, USCIS has not produced those documents.

At its core, the issue goes beyond processing statistics. Denying or obstructing access to A-Files undermines transparency, accountability, and the constitutional principle of due process foundations of a fair immigration system.