Opinion ID: 741147
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The INS's construction is permissible

Text: 43 The second step of the Chevron analysis is to consider whether the INS's interpretation is a permissible construction of the statute. The district court considered the BIA's analysis in both Matter of Kong and Matter of Li and found permissible the INS's requirement that to qualify as legal siblings under the Act, a petitioner must show that she and the beneficiary once qualified as children of a common parent and that the parental relationship has not been severed. 931 F.Supp. at 1503. 44 We agree with the district court's analysis and conclusion. The INS's two-part test reasonably ties the sibling relationship to the primary familial relationship defined in the Act--the parent-child relationship. By so doing, the INS's construction: 1) stays within four corners of the INA and does not rely on external definitions; 2) gives full meaning to the express language of the section 101(b)(1)(E) proviso prohibiting natural parents from benefitting from adoption; 3) prevents a scenario specifically prohibited by Congress whereby adopted children obtain preferences for natural siblings who then obtain preferences for natural parents; and 4) is consistent with the overall structure of Act, which emphasizes the primacy of the parent-child relationship and confers more benefits on parents than other relatives. 45 We therefore hold that the INS's interpretation of the INA, as set forth in Matter of Kong and Matter of Li, is a reasonable and permissible construction of the statute. II 46 We must next consider whether the INS abused its discretion by announcing a new rule in an adjudicative forum. Young insists that the BIA's decision in Matter of Li constituted a departure from the contrary, prevailing rule of Matter of Fujii. Because she had justifiably relied on the Fujii rule and because the change imposed a substantial hardship on her without notice, Young contends that the INS should have made this new rule pursuant to the rule-making procedures of the Administrative Procedures Act (APA), 5 U.S.C. § 553. See Ruangswang v. INS, 591 F.2d 39 (9th Cir.1978) (INS abused its discretion in establishing and applying new standard in adjudicatory process because alien relied on prior rule, did not have adequate notice, and suffered substantial adverse consequences). We reject this argument because we conclude that the BIA did not announce a new rule in Li. 47 Young argues that Matter of Fujii established the prevailing rule, which the INS applied until the Matter of Li decision. She insists that Matter of Kong is distinguishable from Fujii and Li because Kong dealt only with whether sibling relationships created by adoption survive dissolution of adoption, whereas Fujii and Li dealt with whether a child's adoption terminated her biological-sibling relationships. However, in determining whether an adoptive-sibling relationship survived termination of adoption, Kong set forth the requirements for all sibling relationships, regardless of their origin. In so doing, Kong effectively overruled Fujii, even though it did not cite the earlier case. The BIA in Li did not deviate from the Kong requirements. Notably, although Young contends that she did not have adequate notice that the standard announced in Li could be applied to her petitions, the INS cited not Li but Kong as the cause justifying revocation. 48 Additionally, we reject Young's allegation that the INS routinely applied Fujii and that it decided to apply the Kong requirements only after the Li decision. This contention is not supported by the record. Young's only evidence is the INS's initial approval of visa petitions in three cases 6 --which occurred after Kong but before Li--and the subsequent revocation of those petitions after the Li decision. The approval and subsequent revocation of visa preference petitions in three cases does not establish that the INS routinely followed any particular policy. Further, Fujii, a decision by an INS district director, was not binding on the BIA. Therefore, the Li decision did not announce a new rule. III 49 Finally, we must consider whether the Government erred by applying Li retroactively and revoking Young's approved visa petitions. Young contends that the relevant considerations set forth in Retail, Wholesale & Dep't Store Union v. NLRB, 466 F.2d 380, 390 (D.C.Cir.1972), militate against retroactively applying Li to her case. However, the INS did not apply Li retroactively to revoke Young's petitions. As discussed above, Li was not a new rule, but rather an extension of Kong. Further, the INS did not rely on Li in revoking Young's petitions; instead, it cited Kong as the cause for revocation. Finally, the revocation of a petition is not retroactive, but only prospectively affects the issuance of a visa in the future. Young had no vested right in the issuance of a visa for her siblings. See De Avilia v. Civiletti, 643 F.2d 471, 477 (7th Cir.1981).