• Priority Date
• Forms and Documents
• Immigration Photographs
• Medical Examination
  • Physical Examination
  • Tuberculosis (TB) Test
  • Serologic (Blood) Test
  • Immunizations(Vaccinations)
  • Pregnancy and Examination
  • Fees
• Employment Authorization Document(EAD)
  • Social Security Number
  • Extension of EAD
• Advanced Parole(Travel Document)
• Dependents and Marriage
• EAD/AP vs. H1
• Fingerprints
  • Fingerprints Status Check
• Interview
• Affidavit of Birth

The person can apply for adjustment of status when his/her priority date is current. This can be checked at State Department web site or calling the state department telephone at 202-663-1541 (recorded message). The web site and the telephone system are updated around 15th of each month. The priority dates are the Department's means of establishing a waiting list for U.S. permanent residency in those Categories where the number of applicants qualified for permanent residence exceed the annual limit specified by Congress.

Priority date is your place in line for getting the green card. If you have filed for alien labor certification, then your priority date is the date on which your application was received by the state level agency (SESA). If instead of labor certificate, you are going through the NIW/EB1 route, then your priority date is the date you filed I-140 petition. Your priority date is based on your country of birth and preference category(EB2, EB3 etc.) Currently India and China have huge backlog because of per country quota and huge number of applications from those countries.

Current priority date means there is no waiting involved. All persons qualified for the category in question can immediately apply for adjustment of status (if within U.S.) or an immigrant visa (if outside the U.S.).

Unless the person has filed adjustment of status, the person would have to leave US if his/her six year H1(5 year L1) limit is expiring. Please note that to count the six year limit, the total time spent on H1+H4+L1+L2 is counted.

If the priority date retrogates after filing the adjustment of status application, that application would be achieved at INS and would no longer be processed until the priority date becomes current again. So it is wrong to think that once priority date is current and adjustment of status is applied, priority date does not matter to you any more. Priority date always matters until you get your green card.

When the priority date is current and you have always maintained a lawful status in the U.S. and are not otherwise ineligible to be a permanent resident, adjustment of status can be applied with the following documents: (All of the forms are in Acrobat PDF format and can be filled on the computer. There is no need to download the form, print and write by hand. After entering the value in the field, put one blank space otherwise the value in the field will not be visible.)

• I-485Application for Adjustment of Status.
  Print this document 2 sided. Select duplex printing and print on short edge in the printer settings.
  Filing fee $220 payable by check/money order to regional service center(e.g., INS-VSC).

• I-765 Employment Authorization Document. (If seeking employment while case is processed).
  Filing fee $100 payable by check/money order to regional service center(e.g., INS-VSC).

• I-765 Signature Card.(If filing I-765, EAD)
  You have to sign it and put finger print of your right hand index finger(NOT of your thumb).
  It can be ordered online from INS or by calling them at 1-800-870-3676 or personally visiting the nearest INS office

• I-131 Advance Parole(Travel Document)
  Print this document 2 sided. Select duplex printing and print on short edge in the printer settings.
  Filing fee $95 payable by check/money order to regional service center(e.g., INS-VSC).

• I-693 Medical Examination Sheet. This needs to be done at INS approved doctor in your area.
       List of INS certified doctors in your area. Doctor also fills the supplement form to record vaccinations taken now/earlier.
  Print Page1(INS copy) in White, Page 3(Civil Surgeon) in Blue, Page 5(Applicant copy) in Green, Page 7(Physical or Health Department copy)in Blue.

• G-325A Biographic Information Sheet(Between the ages of 14 and 79)
  Print Page 1(White), Page 2(Green), Page 3(Pink), Page 4(Blue)

• IRS9003 IRS Form 9003, which insures that you are regularly paying taxes.
  Print on yellow color paper.

• G28 Notice of Appearance. This allows your attorney to represent you.
  Print on blue color paper.

• Copy of passport with copy of I-94(both sides).

• Copy of I-797 Notice of Action. It is an H1B/L1 visa status document.

• Copy of birth certificate.
  If no birth certificate or problem with it, see Affidavit of Birth

• Copy of degree certificate.

• Copies of recent pay stubs.

• Six Immigration Photographs (2 each for I-485, I-131 and I-765).
  Note: These are immigration photographs and not passport photographs. They are also called ADIT style photographs. These photographs should be taken within 30 days of filing the application to INS.

• Copy of approved Labor Certificate

• Copy of approved I-140.

• Original Employment letter from the employer saying that the job is still available. It should be on the company stationary.
  Sample Employment Letter

• If applicable, the applicant must also submit copies of all marriage certificates, divorce decrees, death certificates (of former spouses), birth certificates of all children, and certified copies of any and all arrests and criminal court records.

• Finger printing fee $25 payable by check/money order to regional service center(e.g., INS-VSC).

All applicants for adjustment of status are required to have a medical examination. Results of the medical examination are valid for 1 year before you file I-485. After you file I-485, they are valid forever as long as I-485 is pending. So medical examination can be done well in advance even before I-140 is approved, without worrying about medical results being expiring(except that if I-140 processing much more than one year, God forbid.!) The medical examination must be conducted by a civil surgeon in your area who has been designated by the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS). The designated civil surgeon is responsible for the entire medical examination, and will record the results on Form I-693. The required medical exam consists of a physical examination, a tuberculin (TB) skin test and a serologic (blood) test. The designated civil surgeon must perform these tests in accordance with the Technical Instructions for the Medical Examination of Aliens in the United States, published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Due to laboratory tests, which are required, expect results in two to three days. The form I-693 will be given to you in a sealed envelope to present to the INS.You should not open the sealed envelope. Doctor also fills the supplement form to record vaccinations taken now/earlier. Some doctors may not accept the electronic printed form and may insist on the original form. Doctors usually have that form with them. The requirements of the medical examination are as follows:

The primary applicant and his/her spouse can apply for work permit(Employment Authorization Card or 'EAD' in short) which allows the spouse to work for any company and the primary applicant for another part time job or side business without any need to file H1B visa, as long as the primary applicant keeps working for the employer who filed his/her greencard. You must file an INS Form I-765 (Application for Employment Authorization) by mail with the INS Regional Service Center that serves the area where you live. The application for EAD may filed either concurrently with adjustment of status application or after that. The current filing fee is $100 payable by check/money order and payable to your regional service center(e.g., INS-VSC)

To apply for EAD, you also have to submit EAD signature card. It is just a post card size card in which you have to sign within the box and put the finger print of your right hand index finger(not the thumb). The signature must fit within the box. This signature and the index finger print are printed on the actual EAD card. You can get it from the local INS office or you can Order forms online free from the INS or you can also order free forms form INS by calling 1-800-870-3676. EAD signature card should not bent when you send the application.

You also have to submit two immigration photographs(ADIT style) taken within 30 days of sending the application to INS, front and back of your I-94 card, front and back copy of your last EAD(if you had one).

If INS does not approve or deny your Employment Authorization Document application within 90 days, you may request an interim Employment Authorization Document. You must go to your local INS district office and bring with you proof of your identity and EAD application receipt.
List of INS field offices.

If the non-immigrant visa status is expiring after filing adjustment of status application and before receiving EAD, the person can still work but the employer may be fined by allowing unauthorized person to work.

If you are planning to work using EAD, you need the actual EAD card before you can start working on it. Mere approval message on the phone system is not enough.

Also see Advanced Parole(Travel Document) and EAD/AP vs. H1

Adjustment of status applicants whose have used EAD card because their 6 year limit on H/L visa has expired or by working for any other employer other than sponsoring employer are no longer in their non-immigrant status. It allows them to travel abroad and return to the U.S. without a visa.

Advanced parole can be applied by filling I-131 Advance Parole(Travel Document)
(Print this document 2 sided. Select duplex printing and print on short edge in the printer settings.) It can be filed either along with the adjustment of status application or after that. The current filing fee is $95 payable by check/money order and payable to your regional service center(e.g., INS-VSC).If the applicant didn't apply for Advanced Parole at the time filing AOS application, and he/she genuine emergency need to go temporarily out of US, and he/she can prove that, then he/she can go to nearest INS office and get it immediately(may be on the spot or within 2-3 days.)

Advanced Parole(Form I-512) for adjustment applicants will be issued valid for a period which coincides with the time normally required for completion of an adjustment application not to exceed one year. (It means that is valid for one year looking at the current status of adjustment of status processing.) It is usually valid for multiple entries. The approved Advanced Parole form is called F-512 and usually three copies of them are given. One copy for the applicant, one copy for the INS at the port of entry and one for the airline(so that they let you board the plane with out other valid visa.) First time you travel, you give the appropriate copies to airline and INS, and INS will stamp your copy. Subsequent times, you can just show your copy and travel.

Any adjustment of status applicant who leaves the U.S. without advanced parole is automatically con sired abandoning his/her application for adjustment of status. Such a person will generally not be allowed back in the U.S. The person would have to do consular processing while remaining out of US. This applies to going to any place outside US, even going to Canada(Even Canadian Niagara Falls) or Mexico or places like Bahamas. (This requirement does not apply to people who have applied to adjust to permanent resident status and are maintaining H/L status.)

Also see Employment Authorization Document(EAD) and EAD/AP vs. H1

Person can include spouse and children under 21 in the greencard process at the time of filing adjustment of status(I-485) irrespective(except for J1) of type of visa, as long as they are on a valid visa in USA. The type of visa of the spouse/kids does matter. If the spouse/kids are on a J-1/J-2 visa with a 2yr HRR, they may not adjust status to permanent residency unless they have either served the HRR or have obtained a waiver of the HRR.

Even though Part 7 in form I-140 indicates to include the dependents, it is fine to get I-140 approved and then get married and then apply for adjustment of status.

Dependents can "follow to join" or be in the U.S. when you file Form I-485. Your future spouse is already in the US on non-immigrant visa(H-1B, F-1, B- 2, etc.) and you have your adjustment filed and pending, you marry in the U.S. at the local county court and use that certificate to file a SECOND dependent adjustment and have it joined in the INS.

All forms needed for primary applicant are needed to be filed for each dependent except G28. In addition, the primary applicant may need to file Affidavit of Support(I-134). Whether I-134 is necessary or not varies from the lawyer to lawyer. Some say it is needed while others say that the primary applicant's employment letter is enough and affidavit of support is not necessary.

Supporting documents needed for each dependent:

• Copy of passport with copy of I-94(both sides).
• Copy of I-797 Notice of Action. H4 visa status document.
• Copy of birth certificate.
  If no birth certificate or problem with it, see Affidavit of Birth
• Copy of marriage certificate.
• Original Bank Statement.
• Six Immigration Photographs (2 each for I-485, I-131 and I-765).
  Note: These are immigration photographs and not passport photographs.They are also called ADIT style photographs. These photographs should be taken within 30 days of filing the application to INS.
  Detailed instructions for Immigration Photographs

Any document not in English must be translated into English.

Effective July 1, 1999, all single H1/L1 applicants who maintain their non-immigrant status by not using EAD or traveling on AP, can get married after filing adjustment of status application and bring his/her spouse on H4/L2 before the adjustment of status application is approved.

Also see EAD/AP vs. H1

Getting an EAD and using an EAD are two entirely different things. Using an EAD means working based on that EAD and that means when you join any company, signing I-9 form in which employment eligibility is based on EAD. The person can change from H1 status to EAD status by contacting their HR department and filling I-9 form again based on EAD.

Similarly, getting an AP and using an AP are two entirely different things. Using an AP means going out of US and showing AP to enter the US as a parolee instead of showing the visa to enter the US as a non-immigrant. As parolee can't work in US, he/she should get EAD before traveling on AP. Receiving AP is just addition of one more document in your file.

So just receiving EAD/AP does not change the non-immigrant status in any way and he/she is still on H or L status. Thus the person is either in EAD/AP status or in H/L status.

As long as the person maintains the H/L status(H/L status not expired and H1/L1 holders not working for any other employer other than sponsoring employer and H4/L2 holders not working at all), he/she can travel outside US and come back with out the need for advanced parole even after applying for adjustment of status. The person can enter using his/her non-expired H/L visa. The person needs to carry his/her "original" I-485 receipt otherwise serious delay at the airport may be caused. For valid H/L visa holders, there is no need to apply for EAD to continue working after coming back to US. This rule is effective July 1, 1999.

If you are not planning to travel, or work part time for another employer, then there is no reason to apply for an EAD. On the other hand, there is no harm in applying for advance parole and an EAD and there is no reason to try to maintain nonimmigrant status after filing for adjustment of status, unless of course 6 years limit on H/L visa is about to be reached and it that the person has no option other than to work with EAD/AP.

If you opt for EAD/AP, Spouse(and children, if any) acquired after using AP can't join on H4. Can't resume H/L status after I-485 denial, if any. But you can work for more than one employer, and spouse can work. So it is up to you to decide whether to remain in non-immigrant status or to be in EAD/AP status.

In general, if the person is married, he/she may want to apply for EAD for both of them so that spouse can start working and he/she can also part-time work for other employer, if he/she wishes. If the person is single, he/she may want to maintain H/L status so that he/she can bring his/her spouse on H4 if he/she gets married before adjustment of status application is approved.

Some H-1B professionals use EAD(and terminate H1B) on purpose to save H-1B time so that if something happens with the current employer, they be able to pick up the remaining period of the 6-year H-1B limit through another H-1B approval with the new employer. But that H1 approval would be new H1B and not transfer of H1B and hence subject to annual H1B visa.

The INS requires greencard applicants to be finger printed for the purpose of conducting FBI criminal background checks. To better ensure both the quality and integrity of the process, the INS processes fingerprint cards for immigration benefits only if an authorized fingerprint site prepares them. Authorized fingerprint sites include INS offices, Application Support Centers (ASCs) and U.S. consular offices. In general, INS schedules people to be finger printed at an authorized fingerprint site after an application or petition is filed. The INS charges $25 per person at the time of filing I-485 for this finger printing service. At the time of finger printing, they give a form to fill out in which you have to indicate that the finger printing is for I-485. (There are many other green card categories /reasons for which the person may need to do finger printing.)

Do not submit a completed fingerprint card (FD-258) with your application. Your application will be accepted without the fingerprint card attached. If you submit a completed fingerprint card with your application, the card will be rejected and you will be scheduled to be finger printed by the INS.

Do submit $25 in addition to the application fee, payable to the INS, with your application. This charge will cover the cost for you to be finger printed by the INS.

After INS receives your application, the INS will provide you with an appointment letter with the location of the nearest INS authorized fingerprint site. Please read the instructions in the appointment letter, and take it to the INS authorized fingerprint site when you go to your fingerprint appointment.

ASC will take your Finger Prints and send them to the appropriate service center. Then the service center will send the Finger Prints to FBI. In turn FBI will send the results to the office where you filed your I-485.

Exceptions: Applicants and petitioners residing abroad who are finger printed at a United States consular or military installation abroad do not need to be finger printed by the INS and are exempt from the $25 fingerprint fee. These applicants and petitioners must file their completed card at the time their application or petition is filed.

For most of the adjustment of status persons, the interview is waived, but some persons are called for an interview.

If your interview is waived and your case is adjudicated then you will get the approval letter from the INS service center handling your case. You can go to your local INS and get your passport(s) stamped. You need to take All the I-94s & EAD Cards when you go.

If you are called for an interview, you should preferably take your attorney with you to the interview. Mostly the interview is a formality. This happens at the local INS office. You need to take All the I-94s & EAD Cards when you go.

The purpose of the interview is to make sure that all the documentation in the application is correct(change the address if the applicant has moved etc.) and correct it if isn't. If any other unintentional mistakes are discovered, they may be corrected at this time.

The officer might want to satisfy himself/herself by asking some questions or asking for some documents. He/she may want to check the job opportunity for which this greencard was filed is still available, the person is still admit table to US as permanent resident, maintenance of lawful non-immigrant status etc. He/she may also ask for recent pay stubs, tax returns etc.

At the end of the interview, the officer will place a temporary "green card" stamp(I-551) in the applicant's passport. This stamp is the equivalent of the permanent "green card" and is given to new residents so that they may travel immediately and not have to wait until the permanent card arrives in the mail few months later. Permanent green card looks just like driver's license or credit card.

If any documents are missing/incorrect, the officer will ask you to get those and then hopefully the greencard would be issued after that.

You should not postpone the greencard interview until your dependents can join you. It may take a long time to get another interview and dependents may be refused visa/admittance into the U.S. if they are arriving merely to adjust status.

If you don't have a birth certificate available or if there is any problem with it(name is different from the name in passport, there is no name in the birth certificate, parents' names are not there or there is discrepancy with the parent's name etc.), get the affidavit from your relatives/parents.

You also have to get the certificate from the same place as place of birth in your passport saying that there is no birth record and the birth certificate is not available.

Sample Non-availability Certificate
(Please don't ask why non-availability of birth certificate is under Hindu Marriage Act!)

One possible format of the affidavit may be something like following:

I, (name of relative), solemnly state and affirm as hereunder:
(1) I presently reside at ___________________________________.
(2) I am a citizen of _______________________________.
(3) I was born on ___________________ at________________.
(4) I am the (state relationship to the person whose birth is being verified)
(5) I personally know that (name of person) was born on ____________ at _________.
(6) A request has been made with the proper authorities for (name of person)'s birth certificate but the same is unavailable.

I hereby affirm under the penalty of perjury pursuant to the laws of the United States of America (28 U.S.C. Section 1746) that the foregoing is true and correct.

This affidavit was executed on (date) at (Place).
____________________ Signed Date:________________

NOTE: The above affidavit does NOT need to be notarized.