Adjustment of status is the term of art which describes the process of acquisition of lawful permanent residence within the U.S. by filing an application (I-485) with the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
An application for adjustment of status should be filed with INS
when the priority date of the petition for alien relative has been
reached. Please review our web site under the section titled Priority
dates to obtain this information. Only immediate relatives of
U.S. citizens can submit their application for adjustment of status,
if qualifies, and petition for alien relatives at the same time
with the local INS district office.
It is impossible to include in this web site all of the requirements for an individual to qualify for adjustment of status in the U.S. Some of these requirements are as follows
- The individual must have been inspected and admitted or paroled into the U.S. This requirement does not apply for individuals who qualify under section 245(i). Please review the information below as to who qualifies under this section of immigration.
- An individual must be immediately eligible for an immigrant visa at the time of filing.
- An immigrant visa must be immediately available. Please see
our web site under Priority Dates
for this information.
- The individual must be admissible as an Immigrant.
Section 245(i) allowed individuals who could not qualify for adjustment of status based on failing to meet the requirement of having been admitted or paroled to apply for this benefit by paying a penalty fee of $1,000.00 to INS. This section, however, expired on September 30, 1997. Congress later passed a grandfather provision contained in H.R. 2267 which it did provide Section 245(i) privileges to the following classes of individuals:
- Individuals and their derivatives who are the beneficiaries of immigrant visa petitions filed before or on January 14, 1998; and
- Individuals and their derivatives who are beneficiaries of labor certification applications filed with the Department of Labor as of January 14, 1998.
An application for adjustment of status (Form I-485) by a foreign national not in removal proceedings is filed with the INS office having jurisdiction over the applicant's residence in the U.S. Applications for permanent residence which are based on an approved immigrant visa petition in an employment-based category are filed with the regional service center that adjudicated the petition or the service center with jurisdiction over the applicant's residence.
The filing fees for an application for adjustment of status is $220 ($160 if the individual is under the age of 14).
The information contained herein is intended for general informational purposes only. It is not intended as legal advice. You must consult with an attorney to obtain specific, comprehensive legal advice. Please note that information as well as government fees are subject to change without notice. For current fees and information contact the respective government agency directly.
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