HR Legalist

Immigration Policy Update: USCIS Now Requires the I-693 Medical Exam Report to be Filed Together with the I-485 Adjustment of Status Application

USCIS just announced a new policy applicable to the vast majority of green card applicants submitting a Form I-485 Application to Adjust Status (“AOS”): Effective December 2, 2024, all Form I-485 applications that require the completion of a Form I-693 Report of Immigration Medical Examination and Vaccination Record must be accompanied by the sealed medical exam or else USCIS might reject the application. The USCIS Policy Manual has been updated to reflect this change.

This is a significant change in policy that can and will impact applicants and practitioners who are in the process of applying for lawful permanent residence (“green card”). The majority of green card applicants inside the U.S. are required to complete a medical exam with a USCIS-approved physician (called “civil surgeons”) to ensure they satisfy all medical and vaccination requirements attendant to admissibility into the U.S. Historically, an applicant had the option of whether to submit the I-693 medical exam together with the I-495 adjustment of status application at the time of submission or to wait until USCIS issued a Request for Evidence (“RFE”) for it later on when it begins processing the case. In recent years, USCIS has been encouraging concurrent submission so as to improve case processing efficiency and times and to reduce churn on its officers. As practitioners, we commonly encourage the same thing where possible to avoid additional months in overall case processing time.

However, there are a variety of reasons or scenarios that may militate in favor of submitting the I-485 AOS Application without the medical exam. Commonly, a person needs to file the application while they otherwise have valid immigration status and perhaps that status is running out. Perhaps a person requires a vaccination series that requires 3-6 months in between vaccine doses and such delay will prejudice their application process. Or, maybe the applicant needs time to secure medical records from their home country.

Now, the option has been removed in the interests of processing efficiency. Practitioners are counseled to make clients aware of this requirement at the first discussion of the green card process to ensure maximum time to prepare and collect necessary documentation.

The information contained in this publication should not be construed as legal advice, is not a substitute for legal counsel, and should not be relied on as such. For legal advice or answers to specific questions, please contact one of our attorneys.