USCIS Issues Policy Memorandum Designating Matter of Z-R-Z-C- as an Adopted Decision

USCIS designated the AAO decision in Matter of Z-R-Z-C- as an adopted decision, holding that TPS beneficiaries who travel abroad using a DHS-issued travel document under INA §244(f)(3) generally will retain the same immigration status on their return that they had at time of departure. USCIS will only apply Matter of Z-R-Z-C- prospectively to TPS beneficiaries who departed and returned to the United States under §244(f)(3) of the INA after August 20, 2020, the date of the AAO’s adopted decision. Matter of Z-R-Z-C-, Adopted Decision 2020-02 (AAO Aug. 20, 2020)

AAO found:

1. A Temporary Protected Status (TPS) recipient who is granted authorization to temporarily travel abroad and subsequently reenters the United States using a Department of Homeland Security (DHS)-issued travel document resumes the same immigration status the alien had at the time of departure, unless the alien is inadmissible under certain criminal or national security grounds or obtains an immigrant or nonimmigrant visa and presents it for admission to the United States.
2. A TPS recipient’s immigration status does not change upon reentry, even if the DHS-issued, TPS-based travel document or the DHS-issued arrival document refers to parole.
3. TPS-authorized travel will not satisfy the requirements of “inspected and admitted or paroled” into the United States for purposes of adjustment of status under section 245(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Matter of Z-R-Z-C-, Adopted Decision 2020-02 (AAO Aug. 20, 2020)

Related Resources

• Practice Alert: Matter of Z-R-Z-C Holds That TPS Recipients Returning from Authorized Travel Abroad Are Not “Inspected and Admitted or Paroled” for Purposes of §245(a)
• USCIS Press Release: TPS Beneficiaries Retain Same Immigration Status After Traveling Abroad – August 31, 2020