G-28 RFE in 2026: How to Respond and Protect Your Case

The Scenario: A G-28 Is Filed, Then an RFE Arrives

Here's the situation we'll walk through. Carlos files an I-485 (Application to Adjust Status) with his attorney's Form G-28 attached. Months later, USCIS issues a Request for Evidence. Carlos never receives the RFE in the mail — it goes directly to his attorney's address. His attorney has since left the firm. The clock is running.

This scenario — entirely real in structure, presented here as a hypothetical — illustrates the highest-stakes G-28 complication: the form controls where official USCIS notices go, which means a G-28 problem can become an RFE deadline problem without you ever seeing the notice. Understanding how the form works is not optional.

An attorney or a representative accredited by the Board of Immigration Appeals may represent you before USCIS. If you want USCIS to communicate with your legal representative about your case, you must submit Form G-28, Notice of Entry of Appearance as Attorney or Accredited Representative. Without it, every notice — including RFEs with hard deadlines — goes straight to the applicant or petitioner.

How USCIS Routes RFE Notices When a G-28 Is on File

The 05/23/18 and 9/17/18 editions of Form G-28 allow you to tell USCIS how you would like to receive notices and secure documents. If you choose to have notices sent to your legal representative, USCIS will still send you a courtesy copy. That courtesy copy matters — it's your safety net if your attorney's office misses something.

If an RFE or NOID is issued, both you and your lawyer will receive it. With the G-28 on file, all official notices, requests for evidence, or updates from USCIS are sent both to you and your attorney. But this dual-delivery protection only applies when the G-28 is properly completed and accepted. A rejected or defective G-28 changes everything.

If USCIS does not properly accept your Form G-28, it will not send any notices or secure documents to your legal representative and will not recognize any mailing preferences you may have. In practice, that means your attorney won't receive the RFE — and you may not either, if USCIS has only your old address on file.

Back to Carlos: if his attorney left the firm and no new G-28 was filed, attorneys, not law firms, represent affected parties, and only one attorney will be recognized at a time. Even if an attorney leaves a law firm, he or she remains the attorney of record unless representation is withdrawn or a new Form G-28 for a different attorney is properly filed. This means the departed attorney technically still receives notices — which is exactly how RFEs get lost.

Step-by-Step: What to Do When You Receive an RFE on a G-28 Filing

Here is how to handle each step correctly:

1. Check the RFE mailing address immediately. Do not mail your RFE response to a USCIS lockbox location. Instead, follow the instructions in the RFE regarding where to send your response. The RFE itself names the specific office — a service center, field office, or in some cases, an online response path through your myUSCIS account.
2. Note the deadline on the face of the notice, not when you received it. USCIS considers a response to an RFE that is issued through the USCIS online system to be received on the date it is electronically filed. Additional mailing time (14 days) should be given to benefit requestors residing outside the United States or when USCIS mails an RFE from an international USCIS field office.
3. Confirm your G-28 is still valid for this specific case. USCIS will recognize Form G-28 until the conclusion of the matter for which it is entered, unless otherwise notified. You must file a new Form G-28 with the Administrative Appeals Office if you are filing Form I-290B, Notice of Appeal or Motion.
4. If your attorney has changed, file a new G-28 immediately. If you decide to switch to a new attorney, the new attorney will submit a G-28 to USCIS, which will automatically substitute for the old attorney's G-28. Do this as early as possible — USCIS may have already acted on the case by the time a new G-28 is received.
5. Respond to every item in the RFE. Within the specified timeframe, you may respond to an RFE in one of three ways: submit a complete response containing all requested information; submit a partial response, which is considered a request for a decision on the record; or choose not to respond, in which case USCIS will decide on the record as submitted. A partial response is effectively a concession on the unanswered items.

Common G-28 Errors That Lead to RFE Routing Problems

The G-28 itself is straightforward, but it fails more often than people expect. To ensure USCIS accepts your Form G-28, sign with a black pen — the most common mistake is that the form is not signed. USCIS will not accept a stamped or typewritten name in place of a signature. Both the representative and the client must sign: you must sign in Part 4, and your legal representative must sign in Part 5.

USCIS will reject any Form G-28 submitted without the required information in Part 2, Item Numbers 1.a. through 1.d. Those items capture the attorney's or representative's eligibility information — bar number, jurisdiction, and any disciplinary history. Leaving them blank is a guaranteed rejection. And a rejected G-28 means USCIS routes every subsequent notice, including RFEs, back to the applicant with no representative copied.

A second major pitfall: one G-28 does not cover all forms in a concurrent filing. If the attorney only includes a G-28 attached to the I-140, they are only recognized to represent the I-140 petition. If USCIS sends an RFE regarding the I-485, that RFE may go directly to the applicant, bypassing the attorney and risking a missed deadline. Submitting a properly completed G-28 for each form is the non-negotiable step for comprehensive representation.

There is also a proposed rule change worth tracking: in July 2025, USCIS published a proposed revision to Form G-28 in the Federal Register as part of an agency information collection revision. USCIS announced an additional thirty days for public comments on the proposed change, with comments accepted until January 12, 2026. As of June 2026, the currently accepted edition dates remain 05/23/18 and 09/17/18. Always verify the current accepted edition on the USCIS Forms Updates page before filing.

G-28 Rejection Reasons: What the Rules Actually Say

The USCIS form instructions and the AAO Practice Manual together document the most consistent failure points. The table below summarizes common rejection reasons sourced from official USCIS instructions and the AAO Practice Manual:

The Policy Manual Authority: Where These Rules Come From

The rules governing RFE procedure are codified in the USCIS Policy Manual at Volume 1, Part E, Chapter 6, Section F (cited in USCIS sources as 1 USCIS-PM E.6(F)). Under the regulations, USCIS has the discretion to issue Requests for Evidence and Notices of Intent to Deny for immigration benefit requests in appropriate circumstances. If the benefit requestor has not established eligibility under the applicable standard of proof, the officer generally issues an RFE or NOID to request evidence of eligibility. However, if the benefit request does not have a legal basis for approval and there is no possibility that additional information will establish a legal basis, the officer generally should deny without first issuing an RFE or NOID.

The representation rules flow from 8 CFR Part 292 (Representation and Appearances) and 8 CFR 103.2(a)(3) (which governs who may act in a representative capacity). Form G-28 is used only by attorneys and accredited representatives as defined in 8 CFR parts 1.2 and 1292. Only attorneys, accredited representatives, and law students and law graduates working under the supervision of an attorney or accredited representative may use Form G-28. Notaries, visa consultants, and unlicensed preparers cannot sign or file a G-28 under any circumstances.

For appeals specifically, you must file a new Form G-28 with the Administrative Appeals Office if you are filing Form I-290B, Notice of Appeal or Motion. For matters before the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), use Form EOIR-27 instead of Form G-28. Missing either of these requirements means your representative won't be recognized at the appellate stage even if the underlying case had a valid G-28.

Resolving the Scenario: What Carlos Should Do

Let's close the loop. Carlos discovers the RFE was sent to his former attorney's address at the law firm. Here is the decision path, shown visually below:

If Carlos is self-represented — meaning he filed without any attorney and therefore no G-28 was included — he is the sole recipient of all USCIS correspondence. In that case, the G-28 complications described above don't apply, but he still must respond to the address listed in the RFE, address every item raised, and meet the stated deadline. The key is responding completely, on time, and with strong evidence. USCIS does not grant extensions for RFE response deadlines.

About FormGuard: We help immigrants and sponsors check USCIS forms for filing errors before submission. We publish guides on USCIS forms, edition dates, RFEs, and processing times, updated as USCIS policy changes.