Enterline & Partners Consulting | info@enterlinepartners.com

Search
Close this search box.

What is the Doctrine of Consular Nonreviewability?

The doctrine of consular nonreviewability refers to visa decisions decided by consular officers at U.S. Embassies and Consulates cannot be appealed to courts within the United States. The doctrine applies very broadly to decisions made by consular officers whether they apply to foreign nationals who have been refused an immigrant or nonimmigrant visa or by U.S. citizens or residents who receive a decision that adversely affects them. Consular nonreviewability however does not apply to decisions made by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.

While consular nonreviewability provides consular officers with a certain amount of legal protection in adjudicating visa applications once a decision has been made, the doctrine does not prevent an individual (person or corporation) from suing an Embassy or Consulate for an unreasonable delay or failure to make a decision. In the event an Embassy or Consulate has failed to reach a decision or has unreasonably delayed reaching a decision, a mandamus action against the Embassy or Consulate may be filed in a U.S. Court.

A mandamus action asks a court to order a government entity to complete a specific task that it is obligated to do under the law. Within U.S. immigration law, there are many tasks that an Embassy or Consulate is required to perform. When those tasks are not completed or they take an unreasonably long time to complete, a mandamus action may be filed to command the Embassy or Consulate to finish its job.

Once the Embassy or Consulate has reached a decision and issues a refusal on a nonimmigrant or immigrant visa application, a mandamus action would no longer be an appropriate action as a result of consular nonreviewability. However, other options may be available such as a reapplication or in the event of an immigrant visa application refusal where the petition is sent back to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, an opportunity to respond.

For more information of the doctrine of consular nonreviewability, contact us today at info@enterlinepartners.com and speak with a U.S. immigration attorney in Ho Chi Minh City, Manila and Taipei.

 

ENTERLINE & PARTNERS CONSULTING

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam Office

Suite 601, 6th Floor, Saigon Tower
29 Le Duan Street
Ben Nghe Ward, District 1
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Tel: +84 933 301 488

Email: info@enterlinepartners.com

Facebook: Enterline & Partners – Dịch vụ Thị thực và Định cư Hoa Kỳ

Website: http://enterlinepartners.com

Manila, Philippines Office

LKG Tower 37th Floor
6801 Ayala Avenue
Makati City, Philippines 1226

Tel: +632 5310 1491

Email: info@enterlinepartners.com

Facebook: Enterline and Partners Philippines

Website: https://enterlinepartners.com/language/en/welcome/

Copyright 2022. This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. This article may be changed with or without notice. The opinions expressed in this article are those of Enterline and Partners only.

CATEGORY
time
recent posts
CTA_Collection

Over 18,000 successful customers with Enterline &
Partners, realizing the dream of immigration

Latest News

National Visa Center/American Institute In Taiwan No Longer Accepting Taiwan Birth Certificates

Sometime in 2024, the United States Department of State (“DOS”) quietly updated its requirements for birth certificates in the DOS Reciprocity Schedule for Taiwan.  Birth Certificates seem no longer required or accepted for Taiwan nationals. The only acceptable document for proof of birth is now an Individual Household Registration Transcript. The Individual Household Registration Transcript is part of Taiwan’s greater Household Registration System to which all Taiwan nationals must have registered with the Taiwan government.  The Transcript provides a record of a household’s members and their relationship to each other, including details like birth, marriage, and death. Moreover, DOS National Visa Center is not accepting bilingual Chinese and English versions which are now widely available. The National Visa Center is requiring an original Chinese version and an original English version issued by the Household Registration Office, although we have been successful submitting a translation of the original Chinese version.  

Read more >

David Enterline And Ryan Barshop Speak At AILA APAC Seoul Conference

Enterline and Partners attorneys David Enterline and Ryan Barshop recently spoke at the 2025 American Immigration Lawyers Association (“AILA”), Asia Pacific Chapter (“APAC”) Annual Conference in Seoul, South Korea. David Enterline was the discussion leader of the EB-5 Panel titled “EB-5 State of Play Under the New Administration”.  Along with important challenges like I-485 processing delays, USCIS receipt number issues, visa rollover concerns, and ongoing litigation—including IIUSA’s challenge to USCIS’s sustainment policy and the Battineni v. Mayorkas ruling regarding EB-5 fund sourcing requirements—the topics covered included the encouraging rise in I-526/I-526E and I-829 petition approvals. Updates on tax planning, concurrent filing tactics and other topics were also discussed. On the panel “Live from the Trenches with Consular Post Experts in our APAC Region”, Ryan Barshop was one of the featured speakers. The event’s topics included advice on how to handle visa procedures at U.S. Embassies and Consulates throughout Asia. During

Read more >

DHS to Begin Screening Foreign Nationals Social Media Activity for Antisemetism

Effective immediately, the United States Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) will begin considering a foreign national’s antisemetic activity on social media and the physical harassment of Jewish individuals as grounds for denying immigration benefits. The new policy, which is consistent with President Donald Trump’s Executive Orders on Combatting Antisemetism, Additional Measures to Combat Antisemitism and Protecting the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats; will apply to foreign nationals applying for an adjustment of status, foreign students on F-1 and M-1 student visas and those affiliated with educational institutions linked to antisemetic activity. The United States Department of State provides a working definition of antisemitism as “certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred towards Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestation of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions or religious facilities.” Under the new

Read more >
Vietnam
icons8-exercise-96 chat-active-icon