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Adjustment of status is one of the two pathways through which an immigrant can receive a United States Green Card. The other is consular processing, carried out abroad. In May and June 2026, this decision moved beyond logistics to become a strategic choice: USCIS issued a memorandum repositioning Form I-485 as an extraordinary form of relief, subject to officer discretion, and the June 2026 Visa Bulletin redistributed filing windows across several employment-based categories. This guide explains what changed, why it changed, and how to build a petition that will hold up in this new era.
May and June 2026 Updates: What Changed
Three recent developments changed how adjustment of status is evaluated in the United States. Anyone planning to file—or who has already filed—Form I-485 needs to read this section before any other part of this guide.
1) Policy Memorandum PM-602-0199, published May 21, 2026. USCIS repositioned adjustment of status as an extraordinary form of relief and an act of “administrative grace,” rather than a routine path to a Green Card. The official title of the memorandum is “Adjustment of Status is a Matter of Discretion and Administrative Grace, and an Extraordinary Relief that Permits Applicants to Dispense with the Ordinary Consular Visa Process.” It takes effect immediately and applies to both pending and future applications. In a May 22 press release, USCIS stated it will approve adjustment “only in extraordinary circumstances.”
2) June 2026 Visa Bulletin. The Department of State and USCIS confirmed that, in June, employment-based applications must use the Final Action Dates chart, not the Dates for Filing chart. EB-2 for India retrogressed approximately ten and a half months, moving back to September 1, 2013, reflecting the exhaustion of India’s annual quota for fiscal year 2026. EB-3 for China advanced six weeks to August 1, 2021. EB-3 for all other countries remains at June 1, 2024, and the bulletin signals monitoring of the Philippines in EB-3 due to increased demand.
3) Ongoing legal challenges. Immigration law firms, business associations, and universities are preparing federal lawsuits against PM-602-0199 under the Administrative Procedure Act. The central argument is that the memorandum makes a substantive policy shift without going through formal notice-and-comment rulemaking. A nationwide injunction could suspend enforcement while the dispute works through the courts, but as of the publication of this guide, the memorandum remains in effect.
What Adjustment of Status Means
Adjustment of status, formally associated with Form I-485, is the administrative procedure by which a person physically present in the United States on a lawful basis asks USCIS to change their immigration status from nonimmigrant to lawful permanent resident. The entire process takes place within U.S. territory, without the applicant needing to leave the country for a consular interview.
Form I-485 is not an independent path to a Green Card. It depends on an approved or pending underlying petition that establishes eligibility under an immigrant category. That underlying petition may be a Form I-130 (family), I-140 (employment), I-360 (special categories), I-526E (EB-5), or others, depending on the chosen pathway.
The key change introduced by the May 2026 memorandum is that satisfying the statutory requirements for adjustment is no longer sufficient on its own. Even someone who is technically eligible must now convince the USCIS officer that they deserve approval within the United States, rather than being directed to consular processing abroad.
Who Can File Form I-485 Today
USCIS continues to require that applicants cumulatively meet a set of requirements. First, the applicant must be physically in the United States when the application is filed. Second, entry into the country must have been made following inspection and admission by a border officer, with a valid visa or another lawful form of admission, such as the Visa Waiver Program in specific cases.
Third, an immigrant visa category must be available with a current priority date according to the Department of State’s Visa Bulletin. Fourth, the applicant must not have committed violations that render them inadmissible, such as prolonged unlawful presence, unauthorized employment in certain circumstances, misrepresentations in prior applications, or certain criminal convictions.
To these four statutory requirements, a fifth de facto requirement was added in May 2026: affirmatively demonstrating to the officer that the application deserves a favorable exercise of discretion. Meeting the rules is now the floor. The ceiling is built with evidence.
The PM-602-0199 Shift: Why Form I-485 Is No Longer Routine
The memorandum repositions adjustment as the exception, not the preferred path. In practical terms, the USCIS officer is instructed to evaluate each application on two levels. The first level is the traditional one: does the applicant meet the requirements of INA Section 245? If yes, the analysis moves to the second level, which is new in its emphasis: are there discretionary reasons to approve the application within the United States, rather than directing the applicant to the consulate in their home country?
The effect is that cases previously considered near-automatic approvals—especially in employment-based categories and some family-based categories—now face additional scrutiny. Categories with recognized dual intent, such as H-1B, L-1, and O-1, are in a more comfortable position because the memorandum acknowledges exceptions for visas that admit dual intent. Even in those categories, however, it is advisable to prepare the application with detailed documentation of positive factors from the outset.
There is also the “only viable pathway” scenario. When the applicant demonstrates that consular processing is not a realistic option—whether due to health reasons, documented family separation hardship, or risk in the home country—the application tends to receive more favorable treatment. This argument must be built on concrete facts, not generic statements.
Positive and Negative Factors USCIS Now Weighs
The memorandum expressly lists categories of factors the officer must consider. Knowing them allows you to assemble the application with the right evidence.
Positive factors. Strong family ties in the United States, particularly with a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse or child. Consistent employment history and tax returns. Civic engagement, volunteering, and contributions to the local community. Professional achievements and specialized skills. Clean criminal record. Direct economic contribution, such as job creation, investment in small businesses, or documented technical innovation.
Negative factors. Violations of immigration laws or visa conditions. Fraud or misrepresentation to USCIS. Conduct inconsistent with the purpose of the visa under which the applicant was admitted. Overstay of the authorized period. Choosing adjustment of status when consular processing was an available and reasonable option. Signs of a pre-existing intent to obtain a Green Card rather than honoring the original purpose of the nonimmigrant visa.
A critical point in the memorandum: the absence of negative factors is not enough. The applicant must present sufficient positive factors to support a favorable decision. In other words, “I did nothing wrong” is no longer an argument. The officer needs reasons to say yes.
Documents and Forms in the Package
The adjustment of status package combines several forms. Form I-485 is the primary application and comes accompanied by evidence of lawful admission (passport with entry stamp, Form I-94), translated birth and marriage certificates, passport-style photos, financial evidence appropriate to the category, and Form I-693, the immigration medical examination completed by a USCIS-designated civil surgeon.
Together with the I-485, the applicant may file two supplemental forms at no additional fee in most categories. Form I-765 grants the Employment Authorization Document, known as the EAD, permitting legal employment while the primary application is pending. Form I-131 grants Advance Parole, authorization to travel abroad and re-enter the United States without the I-485 being considered abandoned.
The new element in 2026 is including, within the package, a dedicated “discretionary evidence” section. This is an organized folder bringing together employer declarations, long-term pay stubs, tax records, community letters, evidence of family hardship, and any other material that helps the officer build a favorable decision. Several U.S. immigration law firms have begun recommending a one-to-two-page discretionary analysis memorandum, written by counsel, that highlights each positive factor and directly addresses each negative factor.
Current Fees in 2026
The current Form I-485 fee for most adults is $1,440, a rate in effect since USCIS updated its fee schedule in April 2024. This amount includes biometrics collection, eliminating the separate $85 charge that previously applied to most applicants. Children under age 14 filed with at least one parent have a reduced fee.
When Forms I-765 and I-131 are filed together with Form I-485, there is generally no additional fee, representing significant savings compared to filing them separately at a later date. All fees should be confirmed directly on the official USCIS website before filing, as the agency may adjust its fee schedule at any time.
The June 2026 Visa Bulletin and Its Impact by Category
The Visa Bulletin is the benchmark that determines when a category is “current” and an application may be filed. In June 2026, USCIS instructed that employment-based applications use the Final Action Dates chart. This is more restrictive than the Dates for Filing chart, and it changes the calculation of who can file Form I-485 this month.
EB-1 (priority workers). All Chargeability, Mexico, and the Philippines are current. China: April 1, 2023. India: December 15, 2022.
EB-2 (advanced degrees). All Chargeability, Mexico, and the Philippines are current. China: September 1, 2021. India retrogressed to September 1, 2013. The Department of State confirmed that India’s annual EB-2 quota for fiscal year 2026 has been reached and that no new visas will be issued in that category until the start of the next fiscal year.
EB-3 (skilled workers). All Chargeability and Mexico: June 1, 2024. China advanced six weeks to August 1, 2021. India: December 15, 2013. Philippines: August 1, 2023, with a monitoring signal due to increased demand.
For family-based categories, the charts have their own dynamics and should be consulted directly in the official bulletin. The combination of the new memorandum and the tighter June bulletin places two simultaneous pressures on the same group of applicants: fewer filing windows and greater scrutiny for applications that do make it in.
How the Process Unfolds Today
After receiving Form I-485, USCIS issues a receipt notice with a case number. The applicant is then summoned to an Application Support Center for biometrics collection—fingerprints, photograph, and signature. The EAD is typically issued within a few months, allowing legal employment before the final Green Card decision.
In parallel, USCIS may issue a Request for Evidence if it identifies missing documents or eligibility questions. In many categories—especially family-based and some employment-based categories—there is an in-person interview at a local USCIS field office. A favorable final decision results in the printing of the green card, which arrives by mail at the address provided in the application.
Under PM-602-0199, three practical effects have been reported by firms that monitor the agency’s day-to-day operations. First, an increase in RFEs requesting discretionary evidence and an explicit justification for why the applicant did not opt for consular processing. Second, more Notices of Intent to Deny in cases that would previously have been approved outright. Third, longer timelines, because each application requires individualized analysis of positive and negative factors. Denials based on discretion, when they occur, must be explained by the officer in terms describing why the negative factors outweighed the positive ones.
The Alternative: Consular Processing, Now More Relevant
Consular processing is the route used by those who are outside the United States, or by those who, even within the country, do not meet the requirements for adjustment. After the underlying petition is approved by USCIS, the case is transferred to the National Visa Center and then to the competent U.S. consulate, generally in the applicant’s country of residence. The immigrant visa interview takes place at the consulate. With the visa stamped, the person enters the United States and receives the Green Card by mail within a few weeks.
Adjustment of status continues to be preferred by those already living lawfully in the United States, because it avoids family separation, keeps the applicant employed, and allows immediate use of the EAD. The May 2026 memorandum, however, raised the opportunity cost of that choice. In cases with significant negative factors or uncertain discretion, consular processing may be strategically preferable, even if slower. The choice now requires an explicit comparative analysis of both routes, rather than an automatic preference for adjustment simply because the applicant is on U.S. soil.
Situations Where Adjustment Is Not Available
There are circumstances where Form I-485 is not available even for those present in the United States. Entry without inspection—that is, without passing through an official port of entry and being admitted by a border officer—generally makes adjustment unavailable, except in specific scenarios such as the protection of INA Section 245(i) for beneficiaries of older petitions. Such applicants generally need consular processing accompanied by an inadmissibility waiver, such as Form I-601A for unlawful presence.
Unlawful presence accumulated above 180 days triggers the three-year bar under INA §212(a)(9)(B); above one year, the ten-year bar. Both restrict reentry and make consular processing a path with significant hurdles. Unauthorized employment and status violations can also make Form I-485 unavailable in employment-based categories, though spouses, children, and parents of U.S. citizens have important exceptions in this regard.
Strategy: Building an Application That Survives the Discretionary Era
The new reality calls for a shift in mindset when assembling the package. The recommendations below reflect what several U.S. immigration law firms began applying starting in June 2026.
Build the package as two documents in one. The first document is the traditional one—forms and evidence of eligibility. The second is the discretionary evidence: employer declarations, long-term pay stubs, tax records, letters from pastors or community leaders, photos and evidence of family life, proof of stable property ownership or rental, school records for children. The more thoroughly the applicant’s life in the United States is documented, the stronger the foundation for a favorable discretionary decision.
Anticipate the question about consular processing. The memorandum explicitly treats the choice of adjustment over an available and reasonable consular processing option as a negative factor. The package should answer this question before the officer asks it. Valid reasons may include family logistics, active employment, ties to medical treatment, consolidated length of U.S. residence, or genuine risk in the home country. What matters is specificity and documentation.
Include a discretionary analysis memorandum. One or two pages, written by counsel, mapping each positive factor and addressing each negative factor. This document helps the officer structure their decision and reduces the risk of an RFE asking for what is already in the package.
For pending cases, prepare for an RFE or NOID. Anyone who filed before May 21, 2026, should assume the application will be re-evaluated under the new standard. Gathering discretionary documents now—before the letter arrives—avoids a rushed response within the 87-day response window.
Consider dual-intent alternatives when applicable. H-1B, L-1, and O-1 visas admit dual intent and offer a more stable path during this transition. In some cases, maintaining nonimmigrant status alongside the pending I-485 is appropriate; in others, the strategy changes.
Why This Decision Enters the Planning Process Early
The choice between adjustment of status and consular processing shapes the entire logistics of the immigration plan. It determines whether there will be months of family separation, whether the applicant can work legally during the process, whether there is a risk of not being able to return after international travel, and how quickly the Green Card will be issued. Applicants from countries with prolonged retrogression face additional variables tied to the Visa Bulletin that directly affect when Form I-485 becomes fileable.
The practical rule, now updated: someone who is lawfully in the United States, with a current priority date, without violations that compromise admissibility, with a documented life in the country, and able to demonstrate consistent positive factors tends to benefit from adjustment of status. Someone abroad, or whose U.S. presence carries discretionary vulnerabilities, will generally find consular processing—with waivers if needed—to be the more predictable path. Confirming this through careful reading of the USCIS Policy Manual and the Department of State’s Foreign Affairs Manual, and closely following the federal challenges to PM-602-0199, prevents costly mid-process course corrections.
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Victoria Harper
Editor-in-Chief
Leading journalism and editorial content at Visto n’ Visa, Victoria helps make immigration topics clear, trustworthy, and easy to understand. Her focus is on delivering useful, human, and relevant content for people exploring new paths abroad.
