How do you withdraw a petition after an RFE?

Key answer

In writing, any time before a decision, including instead of answering an RFE. It cannot be undone, the fee is kept and the priority date does not carry over.

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Breakdown from the official rules

The answers below are translated from the original Russian - the language of the community chats.

Rule 8 CFR 103.2(b)(11) names withdrawal as one of three ways to answer an RFE: a full response, a partial response asking for a decision on the record, or withdrawal. You can withdraw at any time before USCIS decides.
A withdrawal is final: under 8 CFR 103.2(b)(6) it cannot be retracted, and the USCIS acknowledgement of it cannot be appealed.
You can file a new petition, but with a new fee, and the priority date of the withdrawn case does not carry over (8 CFR 103.2(b)(15)). Filing fees are generally non-refundable whatever the outcome (8 CFR 103.2(a)(1)(v)).
Silence is not the same as withdrawal: if you miss the RFE deadline, the case may be denied as abandoned, on the record, or both (8 CFR 103.2(b)(13)).

This breakdown is built on published USCIS and State Department rules, linked below; the practical notes are generalized community experience. Reference material, not legal advice.

Withdraw, respond or stay silent: the difference

Someone who receives an RFE has three lawful moves within the deadline: a full response, a partial response asking for a decision on the record, or withdrawal (8 CFR 103.2(b)(11)). All requested materials go in one package together with the original RFE; answering only some of the questions is treated as a request for a decision on the record.

If you do nothing, the case may be denied as abandoned, on the merits, or on both grounds (8 CFR 103.2(b)(13)). A denial for abandonment cannot be appealed, but you can file a motion to reopen under 8 CFR 103.5. A withdrawal cannot be appealed either - it is the applicant's own decision.

Neither a withdrawal nor a denial for abandonment affects a new case by itself, but the facts and circumstances of the earlier one remain material to the next (8 CFR 103.2(b)(15)). The officer on a new petition can see the earlier case and what was asked in it.

How it is done

The rule sets no separate form: a withdrawal is a written, signed request from the petitioner that quotes the case receipt number. On a self-petitioned EB-1A or NIW the petitioner is the beneficiary; if there is a representative on a G-28, they usually prepare the letter.

Community practice (July 2026): the letter went to the address for RFE responses with the RFE page itself attached, the same way as a response. The rule does not require a reason. This is the community's practice, not USCIS instructions - check the address and directions in your own RFE.

Before sending, check what depends on this petition. If an I-485 was filed with it, or your family's status depends on it, withdrawal takes away their basis. Discuss that step with an attorney.

If the petition is already approved

Employment-based petitions, including an I-140 for EB-1A or NIW, fall under 8 CFR 205.1(a)(3)(iii)(C): a written withdrawal filed less than 180 days after approval automatically revokes the approval, unless an associated I-485 has been pending for 180 days or more. A petition withdrawn 180 days or more after approval, or after the associated I-485 was filed, remains approved unless USCIS revokes it on other grounds.

Withdrawal at your own initiative and revocation of an approval at USCIS's initiative are different procedures. Revocation is preceded by a NOIR, a notice of intent to revoke.

The DS-160 asks whether an immigrant petition has ever been filed on your behalf. A withdrawn petition was still filed - answer truthfully.

What the chats ask

In July 2026 the community chats on talent visas and RFE responses asked 7 questions about withdrawal: how to withdraw a case after an RFE when it was filed online (Jul 15 and Jul 18), whether there is a sample letter to withdraw an NIW (Jul 19), what to attach and what reason to give (Jul 23, twice), how withdrawal differs from revocation (Jul 25), and what risk follows withdrawing an I-140 when no I-485 was filed (Jul 1).

Most often withdrawal was seen as a way to keep a denial off the record. Under 8 CFR 103.2(b)(15) a withdrawal is indeed not a denial, but it does not erase the earlier case either: its circumstances remain material to the next filing.

Sources

8 CFR 103.2: withdrawal, RFE responses, effects (eCFR, checked Sep 30, 2026)
Paragraphs (a)(1)(v), (b)(6), (b)(11), (b)(13), (b)(15).
8 CFR 205.1: automatic revocation (eCFR)
The 180-day rule for employment-based petitions.
8 CFR 103.5: motions to reopen (eCFR)

All questions on: RFE and denials All questions on: Process and timelines All questions on: The petition and formatting All questions on: EB-2 NIW