Background

This transmittal amends chapter I-2-0 of the Hearings, Appeals and Litigation Law (HALLEX) manual to update and clarify the procedures when a claimant changes his or her address while a request for hearing is pending. For consistency with updates to the regulations, we also explain when an administrative law judge (ALJ) may allow a claimant to appear at a hearing by telephone. We updated references regarding travel reimbursements. We also made other formatting and editorial changes.

Explanation of Content and Changes

This transmittal revises I-2-0-70 and I-2-0-72 as follows:

I-2-0-70 A – We made minor editorial changes.

I-2-0-70 B – We deleted the existing NOTE because the information is superseded by the information in new subsection C.

I-2-0-70 C – We added new subsection C to provide instructions on case transfers when a claimant has notified the hearing office (HO) of a change in residence address that falls under the jurisdiction of another HO. The HO will not transfer a case to the new HO unless the claimant will need to travel more than 75 miles to a hearing site in the jurisdiction of the original HO. We clarified that a change in mailing address is insufficient to establish a change in residence. We also explain what documentation we will accept to establish a change in residence.

I-2-0-70 D – We changed existing subsection C to subsection D and made minor formatting and editorial changes.

I-2-0-72 A – We simplified the existing language and added information previously in subsection C to a new NOTE 2.

I-2-0-72 B – We deleted repetitive information previously in subsection B and renamed the subsection “How a Foreign Claimant Files a Request for Hearing.” We added the language previously in subsection D and made minor formatting and editorial changes.

I-2-0-72 C – We deleted repetitive information and moved the remaining language to subsection A. We renamed the subsection “Receipt of a Request for Hearing From a Foreign Claimant.” We added some information previously in subsection E and made minor formatting and editorial changes.

I-2-0-72 D – We moved the information previously in subsection D to new subsection B. We renamed the section “Designating a Hearing Office,” and incorporated information previously in subsections E, F, and H. We clarified that an ALJ may schedule a hearing by telephone for a claimant living outside the United States if extraordinary circumstances exist. We made formatting and language changes.

I-2-0-72 E – We moved the information previously in subsection E to new subsection D. We renamed the subsection “Reimbursement,” and incorporated the information previously in subsection G. We added hyperlinks and made other minor formatting and editorial changes.

I-2-0-72 F – We deleted this subsection and incorporated the information previously in subsection F into new subsection D.

I-2-0-72 G – We deleted this subsection and incorporated the information previously in subsection G into new subsection E.

I-2-0-72 H – We deleted this subsection and incorporated the information previously in subsection H into new subsection D.

Date: December 11, 2013