60-Day Public Comment Response Matrix

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Form I-751-019 Revision - Responses to 60-day FRN Public Comments
Public Comments (regulations.gov): USCIS-2009-0008
60-day FRN Citation (federalregister.gov): 91 FR 32068
Publish Dates: May 29, 2026 – July 28, 2026
Comment ID
1.
0085

Comment Summary
Commenter: Xuan Luo
First comment regarding the case of a child filing I-751
separately from the parent.

USCIS Response

(1) In Part 7 of the proposed I-751 form, there is a note
that says, "NOTE: If you selected Item Number 1.a. or
1.b. in Part 2., your spouse or stepparent must also read
and sign the petition in Part 8.", whereas the same note
in Part 7 of the current I-751 form (edition 04/01/24)
says, "NOTE: If you selected Box 1.a. in Part 3., your
spouse must also read and sign the petition in Part 8." So
it seems that Item 1.b was added.

The regulations do not currently allow for the
submission of a jointly filed Form I-751 without the
signatures from both joint petitioners. 8 CFR
216.4(a) requires a separate petition (Form I-751)
filed by a dependent child if they cannot be
included in a joint petition filed by the parent and
parent’s petitioning spouse

The requirement for the stepparent to sign in the case of
a conditional permanent resident child filing I-751
separately (i.e. Item 1.b in Part 2), might prevent the
child from applying to remove conditions in a case where
the conditional permanent resident parent is unable or
unwilling to include the child in their I-751, and the
stepparent refuses to sign the separate I-751 for the
child. But preventing the child from applying to remove
conditions in this case doesn't make sense in terms of
the intent of the law, since Removal of Conditions is
about ensuring the genuineness of the marriage
between the conditional permanent resident parent and
the stepparent, and not about ensuring a good
relationship between the child and the stepparent.

In the cases involving a conditional permanent
resident child (CPR), the joint petitioners are the
conditional child and the petitioning spouse
(stepparent) who married their parent which
created the relationship that their conditional
permanent residence status is based.

Consider a case where the conditional permanent
resident parent and the stepparent filed I-751 jointly,
but chose not to include a conditional permanent
resident child, and that joint I-751 is ultimately
approved. But their conditional permanent resident child
files I-751 separately, but is rejected because they
couldn't get the stepparent's signature. This result serves
no purpose in preventing marriage fraud, since both I751s are predicated on the genuineness of the same
marriage, so if the parent's I-751 is jointly filed and
approved, then the genuineness of the marriage is
already established.
In a case where an immigration petitioner refuses to file
a joint I-751 for their conditional permanent resident
spouse, that spouse has an alternative avenue to
removing conditions, by filing for divorce and filing a
waiver I-751 on the basis of divorce. However, in a case
where an immigration petitioner refuses to file a joint I751 for their conditional permanent resident stepchild,
that stepchild cannot unilaterally force their parent to
divorce, and therefore, does not have access to the
divorce waiver route.

Response: No further changes were made based
on this comment.

Similarly like their parent, the child in some
circumstances may file Form I-751 in accordance
with 8 CFR 216.5 if they are unable to file jointly
with the stepparent. They may be able to file an
individual filing request or request a waiver of the
joint filing requirement.

2.
0085

8 CFR 216.4(a)(1) mentions that a waiver should be
possible in the case that the petitioner refuses to join in
the spouse's I-751: "[...] or if the petitioning spouse
refuses to join in the filing of the petition, the
conditional permanent resident may apply for a waiver
of the requirement to file the joint petition in
accordance with the provisions of § 216.5 of this part." I
believe this should logically include the children also, so
the form should provide a way for a conditional
permanent resident child to file a separate waiver I-751
if a petitioner stepparent refuses to join in the filing of
the petition.
Commenter: Xuan Luo
Second comment regarding the case of a child filing I751 separately from the parent.
(2) This comment is regarding the window to file I-751 as
a conditional permanent resident child filing separately
from the parent. In the proposed I-751 instructions,
section "When Should I File Form I-751?", under "1.
Filing jointly", there is the sentence, "If you are filing this
petition jointly with your stepparent, you must file it
before your conditional permanent resident status
expires." This sentence does not appear on the current I751 instructions (edition 04/01/24).

3.
0086
0087

However, USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 6, Part I, Chapter
3, section C-1, contains the sentence, "CPR children who
must file a separate Form I-751 may do so at any time
before they are subject to a final order of removal." If
"separate" here is interpreted to mean a separate I-751
from the parent's I-751, it can include joint filing with a
stepparent. But this statement that it can be filed at any
time prior to a final order of removal, conflicts with the
proposed instruction that it must be filed before the
conditional permanent resident status expires. The
regulation in 8 CFR 216.4(a)(2), regarding separate filing
by dependent children, also does not mention that it
needs to be filed in any particular period of time.
Commenter: WhoPoo App; Anonymous
One commenter expressed an opinion on immigration
matters unrelated to this information collection but did
not provide comments on this information collection
itself. Another commenter expressed an opinion on
unrelated evidentiary information but did not provide
comments on the scope of changes made on this
information collection.

Response: 8 CFR 216.4(a)(2) states when a CPR
child can be included on their parent’s Form I-751.
Regulations do not currently identify a specific time
period for when a CPR child must submit their
separately filed joint Form I-751 with their
stepparent.
If a CPR child does not file their Form I-751 before
the expiration of their status, then their CPR status
is terminated for failure to file the petition. This
could lead to the CPR child being placed in removal
proceedings.
Children who must file a separate Form I-751
because they cannot be included on their parent’s
Form I-751 must do so before a final order of
removal is issued because they can file at any time
before the final order of removal.
If the CPR child has a final order of removal, then
they are no longer a CPR who can have their
conditions removed and do not qualify to have
their Form I-751 approved.

Response: These comments are out of scope for
the proposed revision of this information collection
because they do not provide feedback on the
nature of the or the information collection, the
categories of respondents, the estimated burden
(i.e. the time, effort, and resources used by the
respondents to respond), the estimated cost to the
respondent, or the actual information collection
instrument.