Like all living souls, every petition filed with the US Citizenship and Immigration Services has a finite limit of existence.

Some petitions lose their legal validity when expressly revoked by the USCIS, either motu proprio (“on its own initiative”) based on fraud or mistake, or upon official request by the petitioner for any “good faith” reason.

Others cease to exist by operation of law, such as the petitioner’s death.

By operation of law means the petition’s demise is instantaneous, nay, automatic, as if the departed drags the petition into the netherworld.

Sadly, it is this latter type that is most common — and heart-rending.

And like the Lazarus lore of biblical yore, resurrecting a dead petition, countenanced under limited conditions, entails not only exceptional legal wizardry but a plethora of prayers and miracles, as well.

So, how does one resurrect, or in legal parlance, reinstate, a revoked petition?

Inasmuch as this article seems to deal with the quietus, the discussion below will focus on those types of family-based petitions (as opposed to employment-based filings) whose petitioners meet their maker before and after the petition is approved.

While both scenarios result in automatic revocation, the petitioner’s death before the petition’s approval leaves a very narrow pathway for resurrection.

In this instance, only those beneficiaries residing in the US both at the time of the petitioner’s death and when the petition becomes current — either the principal or derivative beneficiaries — can seek reinstatement of the petition.

Thus, if a pending (or unapproved) petition has no qualified US-based beneficiaries, the petition is deemed infinitely dead upon the petitioner’s passing, and no amount of prayers or legal miracles can breathe new life into the void petition.

However, if there remains even a single qualified beneficiary in the US, said beneficiary is allowed to file a reinstatement application, which can ultimately benefit all the other beneficiaries, including those residing outside of the US.

Among the possible grounds for restoring a petition’s validity under this scenario are undue hardship to the US-based beneficiary, the extent of the beneficiary’s economic and personal ties to the US, the length of time the petition is pending, the good moral character of the beneficiary, and any other factors that can generate empathy and favorable relief from the USCIS.

A reinstatement application should not be antipodal to the US public interest. Simply put, the positive factors must, at all times, outweigh the negative ones.

On the other hand, a petition whose petitioner crosses the great divide after the petition has been approved could, on humanitarian grounds, be resurrected if the principal beneficiary — regardless of residence — applies for and obtains a favorable exercise of discretion from the USCIS.

Considering that most beneficiaries of family-based petitions reside outside of the US, the eligibility umbrella under this scenario is widely encompassing.

As with the first scenario, however, US public interest is always an overriding consideration. Thus, both positive and negative factors will be similarly weighed accordingly.

Humanitarian reasons under this scenario can include the overall impact of reinstatement on any qualifying relatives, age or health considerations, personal or economic ties of the beneficiary to the US, family disruptions, length of processing delays, dying wish of the petitioner, and other compelling factors.

As previously noted, adroit legal representation is a must in both scenarios, in addition to a boatload of persuasive documentation.

Unfortunately, the chances of success are less than 50 percent, making it a gargantuan task that calls for a plenitude of prayers and a Lazarus-type miracle.

Yet, miracles do happen frequently enough to justify giving it a try, somehow.