Opinion ID: 2763094
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Replacing DaSilva’s Permanent Resident Card

Text: After DaSilva’s application for permanent residency was granted by an immigration judge on December 18, 2012, he was sent a PRC to evidence his new status. The mail carrier responsible for his address swore to having delivered it, and the Priority Mail tracking number on the package substantiated her declaration, but DaSilva insists that he never received the card. Counsel asked USCIS to furnish another card, and USCIS instructed 2 The complaint also alleged violations of the Fifth Amendment Due Process Clause and the Immigration and Nationality Act for USCIS’s failure to provide DaSilva with his A- File. Both claims were later dismissed. 3 As of January 3, the estimated processing time for a FOIA request for A-File materials of DaSilva’s priority level was 27 days. Processing time for non-A-File materials, such as email communications not included in the A-File, was 109 days. 3 Case: 14-30296 Document: 00512876525 Page: 4 Date Filed: 12/19/2014 No. 14-30296 him to have DaSilva file a Form I-90. This was the official procedure for requesting a replacement PRC. In the meantime, USCIS placed a permanent resident stamp in DaSilva’s passport so that he would have proof of status. On January 26, 2013, DaSilva amended his complaint to include causes of action under the Immigration and Nationality Act and Administrative Procedures Act for USCIS’s “unlawful refusal to issue” him a PRC. The amended complaint alleged that USCIS “acted in bad faith in refusing to issue” the PRC and that DaSilva lacked an “adequate alternative remedy.” The complaint failed to mention, however, that a card had already been issued and lost, or that DaSilva had been advised to file a Form I-90. The PRC issue was resolved at a status conference on March 14, 2013, after which the district court ordered DaSilva to complete the Form I-90 by the following day and ordered the government to furnish DaSilva with a PRC within seven days after receiving that form (“PRC Order”). The parties complied with these instructions.