A D.C. Circuit court ruled that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) does not have to share asylum officers’ assessments of asylum seekers. The court found that releasing these confidential assessments could harm government interests. The three-judge panel agreed with USCIS’s explanation that disclosing this information could negatively affect the government.

USCIS’ chief FOIA officer previously provided an explanation that asylum officers might change their assessments if they knew the information would be made public. Asylum seekers might also use the information to make their claims seem more credible, even if they are not.

Four asylum seekers had requested their assessments, including the officers’ written opinions on whether USCIS should grant them asylum or not. USCIS provided the factual parts of these assessments but withheld the analytical parts. They argued that these advisory communications are protected from FOIA requests under the deliberative-process privilege. A district court agreed with this view in 2022. The decision has now been upheld.

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