New USCIS Policy Hinders Green Cards in US

Imagine diligently following the rules: arriving on a visa, maintaining legal status, building a life in the U.S. with a job and family, and then applying for a green card from within the country – a process millions have used for decades. Suddenly, without warning, the rules change. This is the reality for hundreds of thousands of individuals following a new policy memo from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

Reshaping the Adjustment of Status Process

The policy memo, identified as PM-602-0199, issued on May 21, 2026, has significantly altered the landscape of applying for a green card from within the United States. This process, known as adjustment of status, allows individuals already in the U.S. to apply for permanent residency without leaving the country. It’s a routine procedure, utilizing Form I-485, that has been a cornerstone of the immigration system for over 70 years.

Previously, meeting the qualifications was the primary hurdle. Now, USCIS officers are instructed to view adjustment of status not as a standard entitlement, but as a discretionary favor – an “act of administrative grace” and an extraordinary form of relief. This means that even if you meet all the paper qualifications, an officer now has the authority to deny your application based on a broader set of factors.

New Factors for Denial

The policy directs officers to consider various factors, including immigration violations, fraud, false statements to government agencies, visa misuse, and overstaying an authorized period. However, a particularly concerning addition is that officers can now hold it against applicants that they chose to apply from within the U.S. when consular processing abroad was an option.

This fundamentally shifts the system. The ability to apply from within the U.S. was designed precisely to avoid the difficulties and potential impossibilities of leaving the country. Now, the choice to use this established legal pathway can be used as a reason for denial. This guidance applies not only to new applications but also to those already pending in the system, leaving many in limbo.

Widespread Impact and Limited Alternatives

Legal experts estimate that this policy could affect between 700,000 and one million individuals currently awaiting green cards, many of whom are family-based or employment-based immigrants. Indian nationals, with a significant portion of the green card backlog, are particularly at risk. The government’s suggested alternative – applying from one’s home country – is often not a viable solution.

With immigrant visa processing halted in 75 countries and travel ban proclamations restricting entry from 39 nations effective January 1, 2026, leaving the U.S. could mean being unable to return. This creates a “closed loop” where individuals are forced to leave but may face insurmountable barriers to re-entry or completing the process abroad.

“The thing millions of people did legally, the thing the system was built to allow, is now something an officer can use as a reason to say no.” — Baller Alert Analysis

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has attempted damage control, stating the policy primarily affects those who don’t merit the benefit and that decisions remain case-by-case. They clarified that current green card holders are unaffected. However, immigration attorneys argue this memo grants officers significantly more discretion to deny applications that would have previously been approved.

While individuals on dual-intent visas like H-1B and L-1 might face less risk, the memo’s broad language could impact all adjustment of status categories. Critics view this as a forced departure policy disguised in bureaucratic language, pressuring individuals who built lives under one set of rules to uproot themselves under another. Legal challenges are already underway, and the full impact will unfold as officers begin applying this new discretionary standard.