2024 EOIR-40 SUPPORTING STATEMENT.final.signed.2-26-2025

SUPPORTING STATEMENT
OMB No. 1125-0009
Application for Suspension of Deportation
Form EOIR-40
______________________________________________________________________________
Part A. Justification
1. Necessity of Information Collection - Certain individuals who are deportable from the
United States may be eligible to request that the Attorney General suspend their
deportation and adjust their status under former section 244 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (INA). See also 8 C.F.R. § 1240.55 (2024). To be granted such relief
from deportation, the applicant must prove that s/he meets all the statutory
prerequisites for such relief and that s/he is entitled to a favorable exercise of
discretion. Each applicant for suspension of deportation will file one application
(Form EOIR-40) based on the individual facts and circumstances in his/her case. The
form contains information, such as identifying characteristics, residence, employment
history and family information, which is necessary for the Attorney General to decide
whether to permit the applicant to remain in the United States. The authority to
adjudicate the application for suspension of deportation has been delegated to
immigration judges by the Attorney General.
As part of the reauthorization process, the Executive Office for Immigration
Review (EOIR) has made a few non-substantive changes to the current Form EOIR40, to include typographical and grammatical edits, adding appropriate spacing
between words, and removing unnecessary spacing and symbols between words.

Additionally, EOIR is proposing to make a few minor but substantive changes to
the current Form EOIR-40. First, EOIR has proposed clarifying the description of the
dimension of an applicant’s facial image for passport photographs. Second, EOIR
also slightly modified the sentence explaining the purpose and instructions of this
form, for ease of reading and to improve the sentence structure. Third, EOIR also
changed the word “home” phone number to “cell” phone number to align with the
most common form of telephonic communication. Fourth, and finally, EOIR
included a privacy act statement, setting forth the legal authority and purpose for the
information collection.

2. Needs and Uses - The application for suspension of deportation (Form EOIR-40) is
filed and considered in the context of an immigration court proceeding. Accordingly,
information contained in the application is considered only to the extent necessary to
process the application. The application is accepted into the official record of the
immigration proceeding and is considered by an immigration judge, or the Board of
Immigration Appeals if on appeal, in determining the applicant’s request for
suspension of deportation. The authority to adjudicate the application for suspension
of deportation has been delegated to EOIR by the Attorney General.

3. Use of Technology - The use of this form provides the most efficient means for
collecting and processing the required data. The Form EOIR-40 is available on
EOIR’s website as a fillable pdf. Information can be typed into the online form,

which can then be printed out for submission to EOIR, or the individual has the
option of printing the form in its entirety for completion by typing or printing legibly.
An alien’s attorney or accredited representative may also electronically file the form
through the EOIR Courts & Appeals System (ECAS) Case Portal, which is a system
that allows representatives who have registered with EOIR to electronically file court
documents. Alternatively, aliens, who are unrepresented, may electronically file the
form through the Respondent Access Portal, which is a system that allows
unrepresented individuals in immigration proceedings to voluntarily file certain
documents electronically with the immigration court.

4. Efforts to Identify Duplication - The only method for applying for suspension of
deportation for an alien in immigration proceedings is to file the Form EOIR-40. A
review of EOIR’s forms revealed no duplication of effort, and there is no similar
information currently being collected which can be used for this purpose.

5. Impact on Small Businesses - This collection has a minor impact on small businesses
or other small entities to the extent they employ attorneys or accredited
representatives who represent parties in proceedings before the immigration courts.
However, this collection does not impose any undue burden on the small businesses
or other entities. EOIR estimates that the form takes five minutes to complete. In
addition, the requested information is needed to adjudicate an alien’s request for
suspension of deportation under former section 244 of the INA.

6. Consequences of Less Frequent Collection - Failure to collect this information would
deprive the individual from establishing his or her eligibility for suspension of
deportation.
7. Special Circumstances Influencing Collection - None of the eight special
circumstances identified in OMB instruction number 7 apply to this collection.
8. Federal Register Publication and Consultation - A 60-day notice covering this
collection was published in the Federal Register on November 20, 2024. No public
comments were received. A 30-day notice covering this collection was published in
the Federal Register on January 30, 2025. If any public comments are received, they
will be considered and incorporated as appropriate.
9. Payment or Gift to Claimants - EOIR does not provide any payment or gifts to
individuals in exchange for the information provided in Form EOIR-40.
10. Assurance of Confidentiality - The original application is maintained by EOIR in the
official court record of proceeding (ROP) and is accessed by those staff members
processing the ROP. The confidentiality of the contents of the Form EOIR-40 is
protected by EOIR, as are all the documents in the ROP, to the extent permitted by
the law, including the Privacy Act and the Freedom of Information Act.
11. Justification for Sensitive Questions - Any question that may inquire into matters
commonly considered as private is necessary for the immigration judge to consider an
applicant’s statutory and discretionary eligibility for suspension of deportation and to
determine his/her legal right to remain in the United States.

12. Estimate of Hour Burden
a. Number of Respondents

147

b. Number of Responses per Respondent

1 each

c. Total Annual responses

147

d. Hours per response

5 hours, 45 minutes

e. Total annual hourly reporting burden

845.25

The total annual reporting burden is derived by multiplying the number of respondents
(147) by the frequency of response (1) by the number of hours per response (5 hours, 45
minutes, or 5.75): 147 respondents x 1 response per respondent x 5.75 per response =
845.25 burden hours. The reporting burden for this collection of information is computed
as follows: 1) learning about the form, 45 minutes, 2) completing the form, 2 hours, and
3) assembling and filing the form, 3 hours—for an average of 5 hours, 45 minutes per
application.

13. Estimate of Cost Burden - There are no capital or start-up costs associated with this
information collection. The estimated total public cost is $73,935.12. This estimate is
derived by multiplying the burden hours of 845.25 by the estimated practitioner cost of
$70.08 per hour, plus a filing fee of $100 per respondent.
845.25 burden hours x $70.08/hr (estimated practitioner cost) = $59,235.12
$100 filing fee x 147 respondents = $14,700
$59,235.12+ $14,700 = $73,935.12
These costs are estimates with respect to the burden on the public and may vary

depending on whether a respondent uses a practitioner for assistance in completing the
form, the level of detail a respondent includes in the form and whether the respondent
seeks a waiver of the filing fee. The amount of $73,935.12 represents the maximum
estimate of cost burden. EOIR recognizes that a certain portion of the respondents will
not retain a practitioner to assist them in filling out the form; accordingly, not every
respondent will incur the practitioner’s fees. The practitioner fee represents the median
hourly wage for lawyers, as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. For those
individuals who proceed without a practitioner, there is an estimated cost of $10 per hour
for completing the form (the individuals’ time and supplies) in lieu of the practitioner
cost. This amount to the individual is not included as it is less than the estimated
practitioner cost and would not add to the maximum estimate of $73,935.12.
Additionally, respondents may seek to have the $100 filing fee waived by requesting a
waiver from an Immigration Judge or submitting Form E-26A.

14. Estimated Cost to Federal Government - It is estimated that the annual cost for
printing, distributing, stocking, processing, and maintaining the Form EOIR-40 is
$589.40. This estimate was derived by adding the cost to process the total annual
responses to the overhead costs to the agency. The annual cost to process the forms was
derived by dividing the hourly wage to process the form ($25.84) by the time estimated in
hours for the processing of the information collected (0.083) multiplied by the total
estimated annual responses (147) = $315.27. The overhead cost to the agency is
estimated to be 31% of the annual cost to process the forms ($315.27) = $97.73. The
form, including the instructions, is twelve pages. The maximum cost of printing the form,

were the agency to provide the applicants with copies of the form as a courtesy, would be
$176.4 (147 forms x 12 pages x .10 per page).

15. Reason for Change in Burden -The difference in hour burden is due to an agency
adjustment, specifically an increase in the number of respondents. Previously, EOIR
estimated 133 respondents annually. At present, there are approximately 147 respondents
annually. As the number of hours per response remained the same (5 hours, 45 minutes),
the total burden hours increased from 764.75 to 845.25 burden hours, for a difference of
80.50 burden hours. Because of the higher number of respondents, the cost burden to
respondents similarly increased to reflect the adjustment for the number of applicants.

16. Plans for Publication - EOIR does not intend to employ the use of statistics or the
publication thereof for this collection of information.

17. Exceptions to Certification Statement - EOIR does not request an exception to the
certification of this information collection.

Section B. Collection of Information Employing Statistical Methods
This collection does not employ statistical methods.

PAPERWORK CERTIFICATION

In submitting this request for Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval, I certify that
the requirements of the Privacy Act and OMB directives have been complied with, including
paperwork regulations, any applicable statistical standards or directives, and any other
information policy directives promulgated under 5 C.F.R. § 1320.

signed by
ALEXANDER Digitally
ALEXANDER HARTMAN
2025.02.26
HARTMAN Date:
15:55:53 -05'00'
_____________________

__________________
Date

Alexander Y. Hartman
Senior Associate General Counsel
Executive Office for Immigration Review

8