This INS letter confirms that “Neither the submission of a new Form I-751 nor of a motion to reopen or reconsider a previously adjudicated Form I-751 should be formally rejected solely because the alien’s conditional resident status has been terminated and the alien placed in deportation proceedings.”

These regulations govern conditional residence for immigrant spouses of U.S. citizens and have been significantly outdated for many years. The Violence Against Women Act of 1994 statutorily over ruled 8 C.F.R. 216.5(e)(3)(iv)-(vii) and VAWA confidentiality which became law in 1996 impacts 8 C.F.R. 216.5(e)(3)(viii).