Withdrawing a Document from Publication

If necessary, you may completely withdraw a document from publication. If we have not placed the document on file for public inspection, we will make it available for pick-up (paper documents only). If we have already placed the document on file for public inspection, we will withdraw it and it will not publish in the Federal Register. We will replace your document with a document stating the fact of the withdrawal.  That document remains on public inspection through the date it was originally scheduled to publish. Further, the document becomes our record, so we cannot return it to you.[1]

Before Filing for Public Inspection

If we have not yet filed the document for public inspection, your Federal Register Liaison Officer must request that we withdraw the document from publication by emailing us the Document Withdrawal Request (before PIL) letter. If you are requesting withdrawal on the business day before your document is scheduled to file, we must receive your letter before 4:00 pm to ensure that we can remove from the next day’s public inspection list.

We will not withdraw the document until we receive your letter.

After Filing and Before Publication

If we have filed the document for public inspection, your Liaison Officer must request that we withdraw it from publication by emailing us the Document Withdrawal Request (after PIL) letter. 

The letter must reach the OFR before 12 noon on the business day before the document’s scheduled publication date.

We will not withdraw the document until we receive your letter.

If you wish to publish the document on a later date, we consider that a new document. You must send a new document package and request for publication, following the procedures in Chapter 8: How do I publish a document in the Federal Register?.

After publication

The only way to withdraw a published document is to publish a second document formally withdrawing the first document. If you wish to withdraw a rule that is already effective, you must include amendatory instructions to undo the amendments. Send a new document package and request for publication, following the procedures in Chapter 8:How do I publish a document in the Federal Register?.