Washington DC, May 22 — The US government has issued a new USCIS policy memo tightening rules for nonimmigrant visa holders who seek permanent residency, saying most must now leave the United States and apply for immigrant visas through consular processing in their home country except in “extraordinary circumstances.”
The memo says adjustment of status inside the US will be treated as an exceptional form of relief to be granted only in limited cases. Under existing immigration law, USCIS reiterated, students, tourists and temporary workers are generally expected to complete the immigrant visa process at US consulates abroad through the State Department rather than converting their status from within the country.
USCIS spokesperson Zach Kahler said the policy restores the law’s original intent and discourages what the agency described as incentives to remain illegally after a denied residency request. He said temporary visitors who want a Green Card must return home to apply, except when extraordinary circumstances justify staying, and that applying from abroad reduces the need to locate and remove those who overstay.
USCIS also said the change will lower the agency’s administrative burden and allow it to concentrate resources on other priorities, including humanitarian cases, visas for victims of violent crime and human trafficking, and naturalisation applications. The memo directs officers to consider each case on its merits when deciding whether to grant the exceptional relief of adjustment of status within the US.
The release also noted a planned four-day visit to India beginning May 23 by Marco Rubio. This report is based on a syndicated feed and was published as received; The Tribune assumes no responsibility for its accuracy or completeness.
