immigration-fact-check v0.1.1A

Immutable. This exact content never changes and is served at /api/v1/blob/fea1080acd384729.

---
name: immigration-fact-check
description: >
  Use this skill to verify the citations and internal consistency of any
  immigration draft (brief, motion, declaration, USCIS cover letter, BIA
  appeal, petition for review) before it is filed or sent. Triggers include
  "verify this immigration citation", "is this INA cite right", "INA vs USC
  section", "check my immigration brief", "fact check immigration", "is this
  BIA case real", "cite-check this", "verify the law", "is 8 CFR 208 or 1208
  right", "DHS or EOIR regulation", "is this FAM cite controlling", "check for
  hallucinations", "consistency check", "audit this filing", "are my cites
  right", "verify my A-number is consistent". Runs four passes: (1) **citation
  verification** — every INA / 8 U.S.C. / 8 CFR / 22 CFR / FAM / I&N Dec. /
  circuit-court cite resolves to a real source with the claimed holding or
  text; (2) **internal consistency** — dates, A-number, receipt numbers, party
  names, paragraph cross-refs agree within the document; (3) **packet
  consistency** — caption, A-number, names, and key facts agree across every
  document in the filing; (4) **sworn-vs.-argued consistency** — no fact in a
  brief contradicts a sworn declaration or affidavit. Knows the immigration
  citation traps: the INA-section-vs-8-U.S.C.-section mismatch, the
  DHS-vs-EOIR regulation duplication, and that FAM is agency guidance, not law.
  **This is a verification skill, not a drafting skill** — it flags issues and
  suggests fixes, but never silently rewrites. Composes with every drafting
  skill in this plugin.
version: 0.1.1
---

# Fact-Check an Immigration Filing

The fastest way to lose credibility before an immigration judge, the Board, a
USCIS officer, or a circuit panel is to cite a provision that doesn't exist,
confuse the INA section with the 8 U.S.C. section, cite the DHS regulation when
the EOIR one governs, or file a brief whose facts contradict the sworn
declaration. This skill runs a four-pass check and produces a human-reviewable
**verification report**.

> **NOT LEGAL ADVICE.** Fact-checking verifies the surface — it does not tell
> the user whether the underlying legal position is sound, nor whether a cited
> case is still good law on the facts. Immigration consequences are severe and
> often irreversible; pair this with substantive review by a licensed
> immigration attorney or an EOIR-accredited representative.

> **Never silently rewrite.** This skill flags issues; the user (and, as
> needed, the drafting skills) fix them. Silent edits to citations or facts are
> how hallucinations get filed.

## Inputs to gather

1. **Scope** — a single document, or the whole packet?
2. **Path(s)** — absolute paths to each file.
3. **Forum** — USCIS, EOIR immigration court, BIA, circuit, or consular. The
   forum decides *which* of the duplicated regulations governs (see traps).
4. **Intended filing date** — for catching post-snapshot amendments.

## Pass 1 — Citation verification

Parse the document for every citation type — **INA** (`INA § 240`), **U.S.
Code** (`8 U.S.C. § 1229a`), **CFR** (Title 8 **and** 22), **FAM** (`9 FAM`),
**BIA/AG precedent** (`28 I&N Dec. 199`), and **circuit / Supreme Court**
(`F.3d` / `U.S.`) — then verify each resolves to a real source that supports
the stated proposition.

### 1a. INA ↔ 8 U.S.C. cross-check (the #1 trap)

For **every** statutory cite, verify *both* the INA number and the 8 U.S.C.
number against the crosswalk in
[`../../references/immigration-statutes/README.md`](../../references/immigration-statutes/README.md).
The offset is **not constant** — never compute it. The common right answers:
INA § 240 = 8 U.S.C. § 1229a; INA § 212 = 8 U.S.C. § 1182; INA § 245 =
8 U.S.C. § 1255; INA § 208 = 8 U.S.C. § 1158; INA § 242 = 8 U.S.C. § 1252.
A brief that says "INA § 240 (8 U.S.C. § 1182)" is **mismatched** — flag it.
Confirm the verbatim text in the matching
[`../../references/immigration-statutes/`](../../references/immigration-statutes/)
subchapter file actually says what the draft claims.

### 1b. CFR cross-check against the regulation corpus

Resolve each CFR cite against the file in
[`../../references/immigration-regulations/`](../../references/immigration-regulations/)
(e.g., `8CFR-1240-removal-eoir.md`, `22CFR-042-immigrant-visas.md`). Confirm the
part/section exists and supports the proposition.

### 1c. Case-law verification (CourtListener)

Case law is **not** snapshotted — verify on demand per
[`../../references/legal-data-apis.md`](../../references/legal-data-apis.md).
Use the **bundled CourtListener MCP server** (declared in this plugin's
`.mcp.json`; if its tools are absent, have the user run `/mcp` to sign in) —
the citation-lookup / search tools, per the `immigration-case-law` skill — to
confirm a **circuit** opinion is real and says what the draft claims — watch for circuit misattribution (the
Ninth Circuit `ca9` has the largest immigration docket). **BIA precedent** is
cited **"I&N Dec."** (e.g., *Matter of A-B-*, 28 I&N Dec. 199 (BIA 2021)) —
EOIR's Virtual Law Library is the publisher of record and CourtListener indexes
many; confirm the precedent has not been certified/overruled by the Attorney
General.

Flag each cite **RED** (does not resolve — possible hallucination),
**YELLOW** (resolves but does not support the proposition / overstates it),
**ORANGE** (resolves and supports, but the provision was amended since the
quoted version), or **GREEN** (resolves, supports, current).

## The three immigration citation traps

- **INA-vs-8-U.S.C. mismatch.** See Pass 1a. Verify both numbers; never assume
  a constant offset.
- **DHS-vs-EOIR regulation duplication.** Several regulations exist in **two
  parallel versions** — the DHS copy and the EOIR copy — and the draft must
  cite the one that governs its forum:
  | Subject | DHS (USCIS / CBP / ICE) | EOIR (court / BIA) |
  |---|---|---|
  | Asylum | 8 CFR Part **208** | 8 CFR Part **1208** |
  | Removal proceedings | 8 CFR Part **240** | 8 CFR Part **1240** |
  | EOIR / BIA procedure | — | 8 CFR Part **1003** |
  A removal-defense brief filed in immigration court that cites "8 CFR § 208.13"
  (DHS) instead of "8 CFR § 1208.13" (EOIR) is citing the wrong sovereign's
  rule — flag it **YELLOW** and point to the forum-correct part in the
  regulation corpus.
- **FAM is guidance, not law.** A `9 FAM` / `8 FAM` / `7 FAM` cite is **State
  Department internal guidance**, not binding authority. Never let a FAM cite
  stand alone — flag any FAM cite that is not paired with the controlling
  **INA / 8 CFR / 22 CFR** provision, and verify the FAM text against
  [`../../references/foreign-affairs-manual/`](../../references/foreign-affairs-manual/).

## Pass 2 — Internal consistency

Within a single document, verify:

- **A-number** (`A2NN-NNN-NNN`) is identical every time it appears, and matches
  the NTA / receipt notice. A drifting A-number is a blocker.
- **Receipt numbers** (`XYZ` + 10 digits), **priority dates**, and **A-file**
  references are consistent.
- **Dates** agree (date of entry, NTA service date, hearing date, deadline
  math). A "30 days from service" claim should compute correctly.
- **Party / declarant names** and **country of nationality** are styled
  consistently throughout.
- **Paragraph and exhibit cross-references** ("as stated in ¶ 12") actually
  point where they claim.

## Pass 3 — Packet consistency

Across every document in the filing (brief, motion, declaration, exhibit index,
proposed order, certificate of service):

- **Caption** — identical forum/court, A-number, and party names on every page.
- **Cross-referenced facts** — the brief's fact recitation matches the
  declaration's sworn content; exhibits cited in the brief match the exhibit
  index.
- **Relief requested** — the motion's prayer matches the proposed order.
- **Service** — the certificate lists every party (and, in EOIR matters, DHS /
  the ICE Office of the Principal Legal Advisor).

## Pass 4 — Sworn-vs.-argued consistency

The brief contains **arguments**; the declaration / affidavit contains **sworn
facts**. Verify:

- Every factual assertion in the brief has a sworn source (declaration ¶ or
  exhibit) — flag unsupported assertions.
- No argument contradicts a sworn statement (e.g., brief says "entered in
  2019"; declaration swears "2018").
- Each declarant attests only within personal knowledge; flag hearsay.

## Producing the report

Output a structured report with a summary count
(GREEN / ORANGE / YELLOW / RED + consistency issues), one section per pass with
the exact location and suggested fix, and a prioritized fix list tagged
**BLOCKER** (hallucinated cite, INA/USC mismatch, wrong-forum regulation,
A-number drift, sworn-vs-argued contradiction), **IMPORTANT** (amended text,
unpaired FAM cite, internal inconsistency), or **SUGGESTED** (stronger
authority available; stylistic drift). Keep it readable — a 2-page report that
prioritizes blockers beats a 50-page dump.

## Handling fetch failures

If a canonical fetch fails, flag the item **UNVERIFIED (fetch failed)** —
distinct from RED (hallucination) — and continue. Report unverified items
separately so the user can confirm them manually. Do not silently rewrite.

## Artifacts this skill drafts

- A **verification report** (the four-pass output above).
- A **citation table** mapping each cite to its INA/USC pair, forum-correct
  regulation, and verification status.
- A **prioritized fix list** (BLOCKER / IMPORTANT / SUGGESTED).

## Related authority

- INA ↔ 8 U.S.C. crosswalk — [`../../references/immigration-statutes/README.md`](../../references/immigration-statutes/README.md)
  and the subchapter text in [`../../references/immigration-statutes/`](../../references/immigration-statutes/).
- 8 CFR / 22 CFR text — [`../../references/immigration-regulations/`](../../references/immigration-regulations/)
  (note the DHS `208`/`240` vs. EOIR `1208`/`1240`/`1003` duplication).
- FAM guidance — [`../../references/foreign-affairs-manual/`](../../references/foreign-affairs-manual/).
- Case-law lookup (CourtListener / BIA / AAO) —
  [`../../references/legal-data-apis.md`](../../references/legal-data-apis.md)
  and [`../../references/online-sources.md`](../../references/online-sources.md).

## Composition

Runs after any drafting skill and before filing. Composes with
`immigration-pro-se` (orientation), `eoir-removal-defense`,
`eoir-motions-to-reopen-reconsider`, `bia-appeals`, `uscis-benefit-requests`,
`consular-visa-refusal`, and `circuit-petition-for-review` (re-draft flagged
items by handing back to the originating skill), and with `immigration-deadlines`
(to confirm any deadline math the draft asserts).