Plain-English summary
Court affirms DHS discretion to revoke approved visa petitions after sham-marriage findings
The Supreme Court unanimously held that revoking an approved immigrant visa petition because of a determined sham marriage is a discretionary decision by the Secretary of Homeland Security and therefore outside the jurisdiction of federal courts under 8 U.S.C. §1252(a)(2)(B)(ii). The Eleventh Circuit's decision was affirmed.
Why this matters
This decision confirms that many asylum and family-based visa decisions that involve discretionary judgments—like revoking petitions when marriages are deemed sham—are insulated from federal-court review. That affects immigrants seeking relief and anyone challenging DHS decisions based on statutory limits on review.
Who may feel it
- Immigrant petitioners whose visa petitions have been approved then revoked
- Attorneys who represent immigrants in family-based or marriage-related visa cases
- DHS and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officials handling petitions
- Lower courts dealing with immigration-related challenges to DHS discretionary actions
Key questions
- When the government revokes an approved immigrant visa petition after finding a prior marriage was entered to evade immigration laws, is that revocation a discretionary decision or a nondiscretionary one subject to judicial review?