USCIS restricts adjustment of status to extraordinary circumstances
Temporary nonimmigrants seeking green cards must generally use consular processing abroad
USCIS
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Change
USCIS announced a policy memo directing officers to grant adjustment of status only in extraordinary circumstances and to route most temporary nonimmigrants seeking green cards through consular processing outside the United States.
Why it matters
The policy changes the default path for many temporary visa holders who seek permanent residence. Immigration counsel, employers and affected applicants must reassess green-card filing strategy, travel planning and denial-risk exposure where applicants had expected to adjust status inside the United States.
Implications
- — Immigration counsel must reassess pending and planned adjustment-of-status strategies for temporary nonimmigrants and document any extraordinary-circumstance basis before filing.
- — Employers sponsoring foreign workers for permanent residence must plan for consular processing abroad rather than assuming in-country adjustment will be available.
- — Foreign students, temporary workers and visitors seeking green cards must account for departure, consular interview and re-entry timing when planning permanent-residence applications.
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