What’s Happening?
On August 19, 2025, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released updated policy guidance that changes how the agency reviews a range of immigration applications. The updates, which revise Chapter 8 of the USCIS Policy Manual, direct immigration officers to take a broader look at an applicant’s background, including public online activity, ideologies, and associations, when deciding whether to approve a request for certain immigration benefits.
These changes primarily impact applications that involve discretionary review, meaning that, in addition to confirming an applicant meets statutory and regulatory eligibility criteria, officers must also weigh an applicant’s eligibility alongside a broader assessment of their background to determine if approval is warranted.
What’s New?
Under the updated policy, USCIS officers are now instructed to consider whether a foreign national has supported or promoted ideologies or organizations that may be viewed as “anti-American.” This could include groups or individuals associated with terrorism, antisemitic activities, or violence. The guidance also notes that social media posts, affiliations, and other publicly available information may be reviewed as part of this discretionary process.
Importantly, while the term “anti-American” is not specifically defined in the guidance, USCIS refers to longstanding legal standards related to national security concerns, such as advocating the overthrow of the U.S. government or engaging in sabotage or violence.
The revised Policy Manual states:
“USCIS considers factors involving circumstances where an alien has endorsed, promoted, supported, or otherwise espoused anti-American views or the views of a terrorist organization or group, including terrorist organizations who support or promote antisemitic terrorism, antisemitic terrorist organizations, and antisemitic ideologies, as mentioned above, to be an overwhelmingly negative factor in any applicable case involving USCIS discretionary analysis. Accordingly, USCIS enforces all relevant immigration laws to the maximum degree, including the use of discretion, to deny the benefit request involving such circumstances.”
This new guidance is part of a broader shift toward heightened scrutiny in adjudicating certain benefits and follows similar updates related to naturalization applications.
What Types of Applications Are Affected?
These new factors may be considered in any immigration case involving discretionary review. Examples include:
Adjustment of Status (green card) applications
Applications to extend or change nonimmigrant status
F-1 student status reinstatement requests
Employment Authorization Document (EAD) applications, including H-4 EADs, OPT/STEM OPT, and EADs tied to adjustment of status
Applications that do not typically involve discretion - such as H-1B, L-1, or EB-1/EB-2/EB-3 petitions - are generally not expected to be affected by this new guidance. However, USCIS notes that some discretionary elements may come into play in certain employment-based petitions, such as EB-2 National Interest Waivers or EB-5 Immigrant Investor petitions, where officers evaluate eligibility in part based on national interest or potential security concerns.
What This Means for Employers and Applicants
This development underscores the administration’s increasing focus on certain ideologies and affiliations/associations when granting certain immigration benefits and the growing importance of presenting a consistent, well-prepared application. While USCIS has not yet fully defined how these factors will be evaluated in practice, the guidance suggests that public activity, online presence, and prior affiliations may receive closer review than in the past.
Applicants are advised to be mindful that publicly available information may now be part of the overall discretionary assessment in certain immigration benefits requests.
It is also anticipated that this policy shift may lead to:
More Requests for Evidence (RFEs) related to an applicant’s background or online activity
Longer adjudication timelines for certain cases
An increase in denials based on discretionary grounds, even where eligibility criteria are met
Next Steps
D&S will continue to monitor how USCIS applies this policy in practice and will provide further updates as adjudication patterns emerge. In the meantime, we recommend that foreign nationals preparing to file applications involving discretionary review consult closely with immigration counsel to ensure a strong and thoughtful filing.
If you have questions about how this update may affect your case or your employees, please contact D&S for further guidance.
This post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.