Cancellation of Removal (EOIR-42B): Guide for Attorneys and Families

What Is Cancellation of Removal?

Cancellation of removal is a form of relief that lets noncitizens facing deportation apply for lawful permanent resident status before an immigration judge. Two types exist: LPR cancellation under INA 240A(a) for green card holders and non-LPR cancellation under INA 240A(b)(1) for undocumented residents who meet a 10-year presence and hardship test.

Cancellation of removal is a form of deportation defense under Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) Section 240A(b)(1) (8 U.S.C. 1229b(b)(1)) that allows certain undocumented individuals to remain in the United States and get lawful permanent resident status. It's filed on Form Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR)-42B in immigration court. Unlike affirmative applications submitted to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), cancellation of removal is a defensive form of relief; it's only available to people already in removal proceedings before an immigration judge.

Here's what makes this form of relief different from almost everything else in immigration law. You don't need to show you were persecuted. You don't need a family petition or employer sponsor. What you need to prove is that your deportation would cause "exceptional and extremely unusual hardship" to a qualifying U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident family member. That standard is the highest hardship threshold in all of immigration law.

The odds are hard. Congress limits the number of grants each year, the Board of Immigration Appeals has described the cases that meet the hardship standard as a narrow group, and meeting every requirement is only the start: the judge also weighs the whole record, DHS can appeal a grant, and a granted case can wait for a number.

The filing fee rose sharply under a 2025 law and is adjusted every year; check EOIR's fee page before filing. A filing without the fee or a fee-waiver request can be rejected; whether a waiver is available is a question for your attorney.

What Are the Four Requirements for Non-Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR) Cancellation?

Non-LPR cancellation under INA 240A(b)(1) has four statutory requirements: generally (1) ten years of continuous physical presence; (2) good moral character during that time; (3) no disqualifying convictions; and (4) exceptional and extremely unusual hardship to a U.S. citizen or permanent resident spouse, parent, or child. The applicant has to prove each one.

You need all four. If one is missing, the judge cannot grant this relief, however strong the rest of the case is.

Requirement 1: Ten years of continuous physical presence. You generally must have been in the United States continuously for at least ten years. A long trip abroad, or several trips that add up, can break that continuity. The "stop-time rule" can end this clock early when a proper Notice to Appear (NTA) is served.

Requirement 2: Good moral character throughout the 10-year period. You must show good moral character for the entire statutory period and up to the final decision. The law lists conduct that bars a finding of good moral character, such as certain convictions and false testimony to get an immigration benefit.

Conduct during the period can be weighed even without a conviction, under the statute's catch-all.

Requirement 3: No disqualifying criminal convictions. Many kinds of convictions bar this relief, including most drug offenses, many crimes involving moral turpitude, and aggravated felonies. Whether a conviction bars you is a question for an immigration attorney.

Requirement 4: Exceptional and extremely unusual hardship to a qualifying relative. You must establish that removal would cause "exceptional and extremely unusual hardship" to a spouse, parent, or child who is a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident. Your own hardship does not count directly; it matters only to the extent it impacts a qualifying relative. This is also the element where a psychological evaluation comes in; here's what Dr. Mantonya's cancellation evaluation covers.

How Does the 10-Year Physical Presence Requirement Work?

The ten years generally count from when you came to the United States. Under the "stop-time rule," the clock can stop early: when the government serves a proper Notice to Appear, or when certain offenses are committed (INA 240A(d)(1)).

A Notice to Appear missing the hearing time or place

The Supreme Court has held that a Notice to Appear missing the time or place of the hearing does not stop the clock, and that a later hearing notice does not fix it (Pereira v. Sessions, 2018; Niz-Chavez v. Garland, 2021). So some people who were told their clock had stopped may still meet the ten-year requirement. The other requirements still apply, and these rules have limits; an attorney checks the Notice to Appear before assuming the clock ended.

What Is the Good Moral Character Requirement?

You generally must show good moral character for the ten-year period, and the period runs through the final decision in the case, which can include an appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals. The law lists conduct that bars a finding of good moral character, and the judge can also find it lacking for other reasons.

Bars set by law

Some conduct bars good moral character no matter when it happened, such as an aggravated felony conviction or serious human rights violations. Other conduct is a bar if it happened during the period, for example many crimes involving moral turpitude, most drug offenses, false testimony to get an immigration benefit, and certain time in jail. Narrow exceptions exist. Whether any bar applies is a question for an immigration attorney; our good moral character guide covers the letters that can help.

Two or more DUIs

Under Matter of Castillo-Perez (A.G. 2019), two or more DUI convictions during the period create a presumption against good moral character. Overcoming it is hard: the question is whether the convictions were an aberration, and reform after the convictions does not answer that by itself. The Board has applied it strictly. The evidence usually gathered includes treatment and sobriety records, employer statements, and sometimes a psychological evaluation of substance-use history and change; whether it adds up is the attorney's argument. If that's the piece your case is missing, tell us about it.

What Does "Exceptional and Extremely Unusual Hardship" Mean?

"Exceptional and extremely unusual hardship" generally means hardship to a U.S. citizen or permanent resident spouse, parent, or child that is "substantially beyond" what usually follows when a family member is deported. It is the highest hardship standard in immigration law. The Board of Immigration Appeals set out the standard in Matter of Monreal-Aguinaga (2001), and Congress meant it to be harder to meet than the older "extreme hardship" standard.

In its leading decisions the Board has said that the usual consequences of deportation, such as a lower standard of living, fewer educational opportunities and emotional difficulty, are not enough on their own; that all the hardship factors are weighed together; and that a case can be strong where, for example, a qualifying child has very serious health issues or compelling special needs in school. It has also described the cases that meet the standard as a narrow group (Matter of Recinas, 2002).

How this standard compares to "extreme hardship"

What recent decisions show

Recent Board decisions have reversed grants where the family's needs were being met through existing services, where the hardship was mainly economic, educational and emotional, and where a family member's mental health rested on testimony alone when expert or medical evidence could reasonably have been produced. When a case rests on a relative's health, the record generally has to show how serious the condition is and, if the relative would move abroad, that adequate care is not reasonably available there (Matter of J-J-G-, 2020). A diagnosis alone is not the showing. If your case rests on a family member's health, talk to us early, well before the merits hearing.

Only a qualifying relative's hardship counts

The hardship that counts is to a U.S. citizen or permanent resident spouse, parent, or child. Your own hardship, and hardship to others such as siblings or adult children, matters only through its effect on a qualifying relative. Children are often the qualifying relatives in these cases, and their dependence on the parent, their schooling and their language are facts the record can document.

How Does a Psychological Evaluation Strengthen a Cancellation Case?

A psychological evaluation from a licensed clinical psychologist is one way to document hardship to a qualifying relative. Ordinary family grief and financial strain are generally not enough, and clinical evidence gives the judge something more specific to weigh: diagnoses, standardized test scores, and a professional account of how removal would affect this particular relative. How much weight it gets is up to the judge. The Board has also noted that family members usually cannot testify with the medical expertise a relative's condition calls for, so testimony alone often needs supporting records.

What a cancellation evaluation covers

A cancellation evaluation usually looks at both the separation scenario and the relocation scenario, because the judge may have to consider both.

The separation scenario: The qualifying relative stays in the United States while you are deported. The psychologist documents the relative's current symptoms and functioning and the clinical risks the evaluator sees, such as grief, disrupted caregiving, worsening of existing conditions, and the effect of separation on a child's development.

The relocation scenario: The qualifying relative moves abroad with you. The psychologist documents the relative's treatment needs and what losing current treatment, school services and familiar routines would mean clinically; whether adequate care exists in the country of removal is shown with country and medical records.

Testing

Testing is chosen for the case. It can include standardized measures of depression, anxiety and trauma symptoms, measures with validity scales that check how the person answered, and, for children, measures of behavior and development. When several measures and the interview point the same way, the findings do not rest on a single test.

Why the clinical connection matters

A diagnosis alone isn't enough. The evaluation documents the condition, how removal is likely to affect it, and the impairment that would follow, described in clinical terms. Whether that meets the legal standard is the attorney's argument and the judge's decision. Research has linked a parent's deportation with more trauma symptoms in their children (for example); those are group findings, and the evaluation describes the particular relative.

Common mistakes in hardship evaluations

Common errors include: generic template reports not tailored to the case; writing a therapy note rather than a forensic evaluation; looking at only one scenario when both are in play; crossing from assessment into advocacy; listing diagnoses without connecting them to the hardship; and inconsistency with other case evidence.

What Is the 4,000 Annual Cap?

Congress limits how many people can be granted this kind of cancellation each year (INA 240A(e); the limit is 4,000). The cap also covers VAWA cancellation but not cancellation for permanent residents. When a year's numbers are used up, a judge who would grant generally reserves the decision until a number opens up in a later year. This waiting is what people usually mean when they search for "42B visa availability." Denials are not held back. The immigration courts' own procedure is in EOIR's Operating Policies and Procedures Memorandum 17-04, which also lets judges decide detained cases without holding them back. Whether numbers are still available in the current fiscal year is something your attorney or the court can tell you.

The practical result can be a wait even after a judge decides to grant. During that wait, children can age out and conditions documented in an evaluation can change, so an update may be needed (Dr. Mantonya's addendum updates are $500). Good moral character still matters until the final decision; ask your attorney what could affect a reserved grant.

Why are cancellation of removal grants so rare?

Grants are rare because Congress limits them each year and the hardship standard is high. Cases can also fail on continuous presence, the stop-time rule, good moral character, or discretion, and DHS can appeal a grant to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), which can take years. Federal courts can now review whether the judge applied the hardship standard correctly (Wilkinson v. Garland, 2024), but that review is limited and works from the record built before the immigration judge.

What a strong record generally contains

• Every real hardship factor, weighed together. A single very serious factor can matter, and so can several factors together.
• A psychological evaluation, where clinical hardship is part of the case, covering the separation and relocation scenarios that are in play. How the findings meet the standard is the attorney's argument.
• Country and medical records on whether the relative's care would be available where they would live.
• A check of the Notice to Appear before assuming the ten-year clock ended.
• A careful record on any DUI history.
• Attention to timing when a child is near 21.

How Does VAWA Cancellation Differ from Regular Cancellation?

VAWA cancellation (INA 240A(b)(2)) is a special rule for people abused by a U.S. citizen or permanent resident spouse or parent, and for some parents of abused children. Its requirements are generally more favorable than regular cancellation: a shorter period of presence, the lower "extreme hardship" standard, and hardship to the applicant counts. It can be an option for some survivors who cannot file a VAWA self-petition; ask an attorney.

VAWA confidentiality protections (8 U.S.C. 1367) generally limit what DHS can disclose about you, with exceptions in the statute. A psychological evaluation can document psychological effects consistent with the abuse described, including emotional cruelty and coercive control that leave no physical marks, and the hardship that follows. Dr. Mantonya also writes VAWA evaluations for survivors.

What Discretionary Factors Do Immigration Judges Weigh?

Meeting all four requirements doesn't guarantee relief. Cancellation of removal is discretionary: the judge weighs the positive factors against the negative ones (Matter of C-V-T-).

Favorable factors can include family ties in the United States, long residence, hardship to the respondent and family, military service, steady work and tax history, community involvement, and rehabilitation after any criminal conduct.

Unfavorable factors can include the nature and seriousness of the grounds of removal, other immigration violations, a criminal record, lack of rehabilitation, and other evidence of bad character.

The more serious the negative factors, the more positive evidence the judge will generally look for. For someone with a criminal record, evidence of rehabilitation is ordinarily expected, and recent Board decisions have applied that strictly. A psychological evaluation that documents treatment and sustained change gives the judge specific evidence to weigh alongside the record. Ask us whether an evaluation fits your case.

How Do You File Form EOIR-42B for Cancellation of Removal?

Form EOIR-42B is filed with the immigration court (not USCIS) by someone already in removal proceedings; it cannot be filed on its own. It covers your years of presence, your good moral character, and the hardship your qualifying relative would suffer if you are removed.

Where to get the form

Get the current version from EOIR's forms page each time rather than reusing an old copy; the form changes from time to time.

Filing fee and biometrics

The filing fee rose sharply under a 2025 law and is adjusted every year, and a biometrics fee is separate. Check the current amounts and how to pay on EOIR's fee page. The form's instructions explain where fees are paid, biometrics, and serving a copy on the DHS attorney. The court sets the filing deadline. A filing without the fee or a fee-waiver request can be rejected; whether a waiver is available is a question for your attorney.

Supporting documents

A filing packet often includes proof of the qualifying relationship, evidence of continuous presence (tax returns, work records, leases, school records), evidence of good moral character (police clearances, tax transcripts, character letters), and hardship evidence, including a psychological evaluation where clinical hardship is claimed. The good moral character letter guide and letter of support guide walk through the letters.

Form EOIR-42A vs. Form EOIR-42B

Form EOIR-42A is for permanent residents and has different requirements, based on years of residence and with no hardship requirement; the annual cap does not apply to it. Form EOIR-42B is for people without a green card and requires the hardship showing described above.

Key Case Law, in General Terms

A few principles from the main decisions, in general terms. Case law changes, so an attorney checks the current law for your case.

• The hardship has to be substantially beyond what usually follows a deportation, and all factors are weighed together (Matter of Monreal-Aguinaga; Matter of Andazola-Rivas; Matter of Recinas).
• A child who turns 21 before the decision generally stops being a qualifying relative (Matter of Isidro-Zamorano).
• A Notice to Appear missing the hearing time or place does not stop the presence clock (Pereira v. Sessions; Niz-Chavez v. Garland).
• Two or more DUIs in the period create a presumption against good moral character (Matter of Castillo-Perez).
• A health-based claim needs evidence of how serious the condition is and, if the relative would move, of the care available there (Matter of J-J-G-).
• Testimony about a mental health condition is generally not enough where expert or medical evidence could reasonably have been produced (Matter of Pelagio Mendoza).
• Federal courts can review whether the judge applied the hardship standard correctly, with deference to the facts found (Wilkinson v. Garland).
• The judge decides discretion by weighing positive and negative factors, and rehabilitation evidence is ordinarily expected after a criminal record (Matter of C-V-T-).

The immigration judge finds the facts, and later review generally works from the record built in immigration court. A psychological evaluation is one part of that record. Whether a denial can be challenged is a question for the attorney.

What do cancellation of removal case examples look like?

Cancellation cases often involve a parent with more than ten years in the U.S. and U.S. citizen children with medical, developmental, or emotional needs. The composite examples below show how the evidence can fit together.

The framework above tells you how the four statutory requirements meet the courtroom record. The two examples below show a hardship case and a stop-time question under non-LPR cancellation, INA 240A(b). These are composite, illustrative examples, not real cases.

Frequently Asked Questions