UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT

ABDUL KADER AHMED BAAGHIL, ┐ Plaintiff, │ │ │ KHALED ABDO ALI AHMED; MALEKAH ALI AL │ WAHASI; AKRAM KHALED ABDO ALI AHMED; > No. 20-1802 MOHAMED ABDO ALI AHMED, │ Plaintiffs-Appellants, │ │ │ v. │ │ STEPHEN MILLER, et al., │ │ Defendants, │ │ MERRICK B. GARLAND, Attorney General, ANTONY │ BLINKEN, Secretary of State, and TRACY RENAUD, │ Acting Director of United States Citizenship and │ Immigration Services, in their official capacities; │ UNITED STATES CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION, │ Defendants-Appellees. │ ┘

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan at Detroit. No. 2:19-cv-11138—David M. Lawson, District Judge.

Decided and Filed: June 14, 2021

Before: SUTTON, Chief Judge; DAUGHTREY and GRIFFIN, Circuit Judges.

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COUNSEL ON BRIEF: Julie A. Goldberg, GOLDBERG & ASSOCIATES, Bronx, New York, for Appellants. Joshua S. Press, UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Washington, D.C., for Appellees. No. 20-1802 Baaghil, et al. v. Miller, et al. Page 2

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OPINION _________________

SUTTON, Chief Judge. Khaled Abdo Ali Ahmed, a lawful permanent resident, applied for visas for his wife and children. A United States consulate eventually denied the applications. Through his original complaint and his failed request to amend that complaint, Ahmed sought relief in federal district court, urging the court to reverse the consulate’s decision on a variety of grounds. The court declined, and we affirm.

I.

A.

The Immigration and Nationality Act requires noncitizens to obtain visas before they enter the United States. 8 U.S.C. § 1181(a). The Act creates a special visa-application process for a spouse or child of a lawful permanent resident. See id. § 1153(a)(2)(A). To start the process, the lawful permanent resident must file a “Form I-130.” 8 C.F.R. § 204.1(a)(1). Once filed, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services determines the relative’s eligibility for a visa. Id.; see 8 U.S.C. § 1154(a)(1)(A)(i). If the agency approves the I-130 petition, the relative must visit a United States consulate for additional processing. Id. § 1201(a)(1). The consulate undertakes its own investigation, which includes interviewing the family member who requested the visa. Id. § 1202(h). The consular official must refrain from issuing the visa if the official “knows or has reason to believe” that the applicant does not qualify. Id. § 1201(g).

If, in the course of the visa inqu