USCIS Memorandum May 2026: Green Card Must Return Home Country Under New AOS Policy

On May 21, 2026, USCIS issued Policy Memorandum PM-602-0199, declaring that filing an I-485 Adjustment of Status (AOS) application inside the United States is now considered an 'extraordinary' form of relief. The agency framed this as a return to the 'original intent' of INA 245, but immigration attorneys argue it represents a dramatic and legally questionable departure from how AOS has been adjudicated for decades. The legal foundation of the memo is contested. INA 245(a) states that eligible applicants 'may apply for adjustment of status' — a permissive standard that has never historically been interpreted as requiring applicants to demonstrate extraordinary circumstances. Critics, including attorney Cyrus D. Mehta, argue that USCIS is misreading the statutory word 'may' and ignoring Congress's silence on any 'extraordinary relief' requirement. Practically, the memo means that choosing to remain in the U.S. and file for AOS — rather than departing for consular processing — may now be treated as an adverse discretionary factor in an application. USCIS invokes Matter of Blas to support requiring 'unusual or even outstanding equities' to overcome this presumption, while critics note the agency conspicuously omits Matter of Arai, which holds that adjustment should ordinarily be granted when no adverse factors are present. For EB-3 applicants specifically — many of whom are in H-1B or L-1 status and have long relied on domestic AOS as their primary path to permanent residence — this shift creates significant uncertainty. Employers, families, and legal teams may need to reassess strategy and consider consular processing timelines and risks abroad. The policy is expected to face legal challenges. Immigration attorneys are advising clients to file pending I-485 applications as soon as possible given visa availability, and to consult counsel before making any travel or status decisions. The full impact will depend on how USCIS officers are trained to implement the memo's discretionary framework in practice.