U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that immigrants seeking green-card status must now return to their home country through “consular processing via the Department of State.”
“We’re returning to the original intent of the law to ensure aliens navigate our nation’s immigration system properly. From now on, an alien who is in the U.S. temporarily and wants a Green Card must return to their home country to apply, except in extraordinary circumstances," USCIS Spokesman Zach Kahler said in a press statement released by the agency.
The policy memo reminds USCIS officers and the public that the "adjustment of status" (AOS) process for obtaining a Permanent Resident Card within the U.S. was never intended to replace the consular processing of immigrant visas.
“This policy allows our immigration system to function as the law intended instead of incentivizing loopholes. When aliens apply from their home country, it reduces the need to find and remove those who decide to slip into the shadows and remain in the U.S. illegally after being denied residency,” Kahler affirmed.
The memo formally instructs USCIS officers to treat AOS as an exceptional, discretionary benefit, ensuring that the standard is applied more strictly in practice.
According to Newsweek, USCIS emphasizes AOS as an “extraordinary” form of relief that allows an applicant to skip the normal green card process from abroad.
The new policy change will affect “Nonimmigrants, like students, temporary workers, or people on tourist visas,” who Kahler says are solely in the U.S. for a short time and a specific purpose.
Kahler asserts that the U.S.’s immigration “system is designed for them to leave when their visit is over. Their visit should not function as the first step in the Green Card process.”
“The law was written this way for a reason, and despite the fact that it has been ignored for years, following it will help make our system fairer and more efficient,” Kahler added.
