Perez-Arellano

Jose Perez-Arellano appeals the district court’s denial of his petition for attorney’s fees and costs under the Equal Access to Justice Act (“EAJA”), 28 U.S.C. § 2412 (d)(1)(A). His petition was filed after the district court granted the parties’ joint motion for dismissal of Perez-Arella-no’s action, which sought review of the Immigration and Naturalization Service’s (“INS”) denial of his application for naturalization. The INS granted naturalization upon Perez-Arellano’s re-submission of his naturalization application. Perez-Arellano contends that the district court erred in denying attorney’s fees under the EAJA. He asserts that attorney’s fees are warranted because the INS’ position was not substantially justified. The district court rejected this claim, finding that the INS’ position was substantially justified.

We affirm the district court’s denial of attorney’s fees, but on the ground that Perez-Arellano was not a “prevailing party.”

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Perez-Arellano first applied for naturalization in 1996, and the INS denied his application because he failed the necessary English-language test. In 1997 Perez-Ar-ellano again applied for…