(a) Grounds for refusal. When a visa application has been properly completed and executed before a consular officer in accordance with the provisions of the INA and the implementing regulations, the consular officer must issue the visa, refuse the visa under INA 212(a) or 221(g) or other applicable law or, pursuant to an outstanding order under INA 243(d), discontinue granting the visa.

(b) Refusal procedure. A consular officer may not refuse an immigrant visa until either Form DS-230, Application for Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration, or Form DS-260, Electronic Application for Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration, has been executed by the applicant. When an immigrant visa is refused, an appropriate record shall be made in duplicate on a form prescribed by the Department. The form shall be signed and dated by the consular officer. The consular officer shall inform the applicant of the provision of law or implementing regulation on which the refusal is based and of any statutory provision of law or implementing regulation under which administrative relief is available. Each document related to the refusal shall then be attached to Form DS-230 for retention in the refusal files. Alternatively, each document related to the refusal shall be electronically scanned and electronically attached to Form DS-260 for retention in the electronic refusal files. Any documents not related to the refusal shall be returned to the applicant. The original copy of a document that was scanned and attached to the DS-260 for the refusal file shall be returned to the applicant. If the ground of ineligibility may be overcome by the presentation of additional evidence and the applicant indicates an intention to submit such evidence, all documents may, with the consent of the alien, be retained in the consular files for a period not to exceed one year. If the refusal as not been overcome within one year, any documents not relating to the refusal shall be removed from the file and returned to the alien.

(c) Review of refusal at consular office. If the grounds of ineligibility upon which the visa was refused cannot be overcome by the presentation of additional evidence, the principal consular officer at a post, or a specifically designated alternate, shall review the case without delay, record the review decision, and sign and date the prescribed form. If the grounds of ineligibility may be overcome by the presentation of additional evidence and the applicant indicates the intention to submit such evidence, a review of the refusal may be deferred. If the principal consular officer or alternate does not concur in the refusal, that officer shall either (1) refer the case to the Department for an advisory opinion, or (2) assume responsibility for final action on the case.

(d) Review of refusal by Department. The Department may request a consular officer in an individual case or in specified classes of cases to submit a report if an immigrant visa has been refused. The Department will review each report and may furnish an advisory opinion to the consular officer for assistance in considering the case further. If the officer believes that action contrary to an advisory opinion should be taken, the case shall be resubmitted to the Department with an explanation of the proposed action. Rulings of the Department concerning an interpretation of law, as distinguished from an application of the law to the facts, are binding upon consular officers.

(e) Reconsideration of refusal. If a visa is refused, and the applicant within one year from the date of refusal adduces further evidence tending to overcome the ground of ineligibility on which the refusal was based, the case shall be reconsidered. In such circumstance, an additional application fee shall not be required.

(a) Grounds for revocation by consular officers. A consular officer, the Secretary, or any Department official to whom the Secretary has delegated this authority is authorized to revoke an immigrant visa at any time, in his or her discretion.

(b) Provisional revocation. A consular officer, the Secretary, or any Department official to whom the Secretary has delegated this authority may provisionally revoke an immigrant visa while considering information related to whether a visa holder is eligible for the visa. Provisional revocation shall have the same force and effect as any other visa revocation under INA 221(i).

(c) Notice of revocation. Unless otherwise instructed by the Department, a consular officer shall, if practicable, notify the alien to whom the visa was issued that the visa was revoked or provisionally revoked. Regardless of delivery of such notice, once the revocation has been entered into the Department's Consular Lookout and Support System (CLASS), the visa is no longer to be considered valid for travel to the United States. The date of the revocation shall be indicated in CLASS and on any notice sent to the alien to whom the visa was issued.

(d) Procedure for physically canceling visas. An immigrant visa that is revoked shall be canceled by writing or stamping the word “REVOKED” plainly across the face of the visa, if the visa is available to the consular officer. The failure or inability to physically cancel the visa does not affect the validity of the revocation.

(a) Termination following failure of applicant to apply for visa. In accordance with INA 203(g), an alien's registration for an immigrant visa shall be terminated if, within one year after transmission of a notification of the availability of an immigrant visa, the applicant fails to apply for an immigrant visa.

(b) Termination following visa refusal. An alien's registration for an immigrant visa shall be terminated if, within one year following the refusal of the immigrant visa application under INA 221(g), the alien has failed to present to a consular officer evidence purporting to overcome the basis for refusal.

(c) Notice of termination. Upon the termination of registration under paragraph (a) of this section, the National Visa Center (NVC) shall notify the alien of the termination. The NVC shall also inform the alien of the right to have the registration reinstated if the alien, before the end of the second year after the missed appointment date if paragraph (a) applies, establishes to the satisfaction of the consular officer at the post where the alien is registered that the failure to apply for an immigrant visa was due to circumstances beyond the alien's control. If paragraph (b) applies, the consular officer at the post where the alien is registered shall, upon the termination of registration, notify the alien of the termination and the right to have the registration reinstated if the alien, before the end of the second year after the INA 221(g) refusal, establishes to the satisfaction of the consular officer at such post that the failure to present evidence purporting to overcome the ineligibility under INA 221(g) was due to circumstances beyond the alien's control.

(d) Reinstatement of registration. If the consular officer is satisfied that an alien, as provided for in paragraph (c) of this section, has established that failure to apply as scheduled for an immigrant visa or to present evidence purporting to overcome ineligibility under INA 221(g) was due to circumstances beyond the alien's control, the consular officer shall reinstate the alien's registration for an immigrant visa. Any petition approved under INA 204(b) which had been automatically revoked as a result of the termination of registration shall be considered to be automatically reinstated if the registration is reinstated.

(e) Interpretation of “circumstances beyond alien's control”. For the purpose of this section, the term “circumstances beyond the alien's control” includes, but is not limited to, an illness or other physical disability preventing the alien from traveling, a refusal by the authorities of the country of an alien's residence to grant the alien permission to depart as an immigrant, and foreign military service.

(a) Grounds for discontinuance of granting a visa. Consular officers in a country subject to an order by the Secretary under INA 243(d) shall discontinue granting immigrant visas for categories of immigrant visas specified in the order of the Secretary (or his or her designee), and pursuant to procedures dictated by the Department.

(b) Discontinuance procedure—(1) Applications refused or discontinued only. Starting on the day the Secretary's (or designee's) order to discontinue granting visas takes effect (effective date), no visas falling within the scope of the order, as described by the order, may be issued in the referenced country to an applicant who falls within the scope of the order, except as otherwise expressly provided in the order or related Department instructions. Beginning on the effective date, a consular officer must refuse the visa if the individual is not eligible for the visa under INA 212(a), INA 221(g), or other applicable law, but if the applicant is otherwise eligible must process the application by discontinuing granting, regardless of when the application was filed, if the applicant falls within the scope of the order and no exception applies. The application processing fee will not be refunded. The requirement to discontinue issuance may not be waived, and continues until the sanction is terminated as described below. In the case of diversity immigrant selectees applying under INA 203(c), if the discontinuance of granting has not been lifted by the end of the fiscal year, the applicant will not be eligible for a diversity visa for that fiscal year, regardless of the status of the diversity immigrant visa application at the time 243(d) sanctions were imposed.

(2) Geographic applicability. Visa sanctions under INA 243(d) only apply to visa issuance in the country that is sanctioned. If a consular officer has a reason to believe that a visa applicant potentially subject to INA 243(d) sanctions is applying at a post outside the sanctioned country to evade visa sanctions under INA 243(d), (e.g., the applicant provides no credible explanation for applying outside the country) the consular officer will transfer the case to the consular post in the consular district where INA 243(d) sanctions apply, review any other applicable Department instructions and proceed accordingly. When cases are transferred to a consular district where INA 243(d) sanctions apply, the adjudication will be subject to the discontinuation of issuance under the sanctions.

(c) Termination of sanction. The Department shall notify consular officers in an affected country the sanction under INA 243(d) has been lifted. After notification, normal consular operations may resume consistent with these regulations and guidance from the Department. Once the sanction under INA 243(d) is lifted, no new application processing fees are required in cases where issuance has been discontinued pursuant to an INA 243(d) order, and consular officers in the affected post must adjudicate the visa application consistent with regulations and Department guidance. Consular officers may require applicants to update the visa application forms, must conduct any necessary adjudicatory steps, and may re-interview to determine eligibility. In numerically controlled immigrant visa categories, an applicant's immigrant visa priority date may no longer be current once sanctions under INA 243(d) are lifted, in which case the applicant must await visa availability.