G-325c Latest Version

[Heather Mitchell]

Thedocuments posted on this site are XML renditions of published Federal Register documents. Each document posted on the site includes a link to the corresponding official PDF file on govinfo.gov. This prototype edition of the daily Federal Register on FederalRegister.gov will remain an unofficial informational resource until the Administrative Committee of the Federal Register (ACFR) issues a regulation granting it official legal status. For complete information about, and access to, our official publications and services, go to About the Federal Register on NARA's archives.gov.

The OFR/GPO partnership is committed to presenting accurate and reliable regulatory information on FederalRegister.gov with the objective of establishing the XML-based Federal Register as an ACFR-sanctioned publication in the future. While every effort has been made to ensure that the material on FederalRegister.gov is accurately displayed, consistent with the official SGML-based PDF version on govinfo.gov, those relying on it for legal research should verify their results against an official edition of the Federal Register. Until the ACFR grants it official status, the XML rendition of the daily Federal Register on FederalRegister.gov does not provide legal notice to the public or judicial notice to the courts.

This table of contents is a navigational tool, processed from the headings within the legal text of Federal Register documents. This repetition of headings to form internal navigation links has no substantive legal effect.

These markup elements allow the user to see how the document follows the Document Drafting Handbook that agencies use to create their documents. These can be useful for better understanding how a document is structured but are not part of the published document itself.

USCIS previously required those seeking certain immigration benefits to file Form G-325 with their application or petition. USCIS has now incorporated all versions of Form G-325 into USCIS forms that separately required them. Form G-325A is now used only for deferred action requests for certain enlistees and designated family members of certain military personnel, veterans, and enlistees. Accordingly, USCIS renamed Form G-325A, "Biographic Information (for Deferred Action)".

The updated guidance, in Parts A, F, L, M, and O of Volume 7 of the Policy Manual, removes all Form G-325 references. The guidance contained in the Policy Manual is controlling and supersedes any related prior USCIS guidance.

On June 26, 2017, USCIS released a new version of Form I-485 Application for Adjustment of Status, along with a revised I-485 Supplement A for those applicants qualifying for adjustment of status under INA Sec. 245(i). In addition, USCIS has also released a new version of I-485 Supplement J that pertains to certain employment-based adjustment applicants. Each new application form is accompanied by revised instructions.

Although the new editions of each form are the only ones now available on the USCIS website, the 01/17/2017 edition of each form may still be submitted until August 24. As of August 25, USCIS will only accept adjustment of status application forms with the edition date of 06/26/2017.

As described below, the revised edition of each form is substantially longer than the prior version, as are the related instructions for each form. The additional length of each application form is the result of revised formatting, additional questions, and lengthier required declarations from applicants, interpreters and form preparers. The related form instructions are also considerably longer than the prior version, due to additional instructions and advisals, as well as detailed specific instructions for different categories of applicants for adjustment of status.

In the FAQs below, we summarize the changes reflected in the revised I-485 and Supplement A application forms and instructions, and address concerns expressed by legal advocates regarding the significance of some of these changes.

Expanded section including contact information, declaration regarding authenticity of documents submitted, and certification that applicant has reviewed and understands all information in the application

New questions on the revised application form cover each of the twelve subsections of crime-based inadmissibility at INA Sec. 212(a)(2), but also include multiple questions focused on determining the outcome of any encounter with law enforcement. While the 01/17/2017 edition of the adjustment application asks a single question related to whether the applicant was arrested, cited, charged, fined or imprisoned for violating any law or ordinance, the revised application now includes five questions related to the outcome of an arrest or charge. In addition, some new questions in the revised application are worded so that the inquiry exceeds the related ground of inadmissibility, including:

The revised application form asks if the applicant has ever worked without authorization, violated the terms or conditions of his or her nonimmigrant visa status or been denied a visa or admission to the United States; if the answer is or may be yes, the applicant must provide an explanation of the events and circumstances. How should applicants comply with this directive?

These new questions are specifically relevant to those adjustment of status applicants who are applying to adjust under INA Sec. 245(a) and who are subject to adjustment of status bars under INA Sec. 245(c). For example, preference immigrants who were inspected and admitted or paroled are nevertheless ineligible to adjust status under INA Sec. 245(a) if they have ever worked without authorization, or been in the United States unlawfully. In contrast, the immediate relatives of U.S. citizens and VAWA self-petitioners are eligible to adjust under INA Sec. 245(a) even if they worked without authorization, or were present in the United States unlawfully. Similarly, applicants for adjustment under INA Sec. 245(i) are also not barred from adjustment eligibility due to unauthorized employment or being out of status. Nevertheless, the revised application requires all adjustment applicants to answer these questions, even when they do not have specific bearing on eligibility to adjust status.

The revised instructions, at 42 pages, are considerably longer than the 8 pages of instructions accompanying the 01/17/2017 edition of the I-485 application. Now divided into two sections, the 19 pages of the Main Instructions component address general eligibility and procedural issues, and the Additional Instructions include 23 pages of specific information for 13 categories of adjustment of status applicants as follows:

Overall, the revised instructions provide considerably more detail about eligibility to adjust, required fees and documentation, and specific eligibility requirements for different categories of applicants.

The revised instructions require the submission of arrest records in connection with any reported charge, even where there is no arrest or where the case was expunged. Can an application for a client with a criminal record be submitted with only the court disposition?

The revised instructions represent a significant departure from the instructions to the 01/17/2017 edition of the I-485 and prior editions by requiring arrest reports as a matter of course instead of relying on the case outcome reflected in the court disposition. Similar directives relating to submission of arrest reports appear in the instructions to other application forms, including the N-400 application for naturalization, the I-821 application for TPS, and the I-821D application for DACA.

Advocates have good reason to object to the submission of arrest reports, given both their hearsay and prejudicial nature, frequent lack of correspondence with the ultimate charges, and the difficulty of obtaining these records. To date, advocates have often been successful in limiting document submissions related to criminal charges to certified dispositions notwithstanding USCIS instructions to the contrary; it remains to be seen whether USCIS will require the submission of arrest reports in connection with adjustment applications.

The revised instructions at pp 9 and 10 direct the applicant to submit a copy of his or her passport page with admission or parole stamp, passport page with nonimmigrant visa; and Form I-94 Arrival-Departure Record. Applicants who lack this evidence may submit secondary evidence consisting of other records maintained in the ordinary course of business to support the claimed admission or parole. Finally, applicants may also seek to establish admission or parole though written statements from the applicant and others with personal knowledge of the admission or parole. The instructions note that, in the absence of primary evidence of admission or parole, or DHS records of the admission or parole, the USCIS will presume that the applicant entered without inspection.

The 11 pages of revised instructions to the I-485 Supplement A are considerably more detailed than the instructions to the 01/17/2017 edition of the form. In particular, the revised instructions recognize that the applicant may be applying as a grandfathered principal beneficiary, derivative beneficiary or after-acquired spouse or child, and review the required documentation to prove derivative or after-acquired status. Note, however, that the instructions erroneously state that a grandfathered derivative beneficiary must show that the claimed relationship existed at the time the petition was properly filed. This interpretation contradicts the BIA decision in Matter of Estrada, 26 I&N Dec. 180 (BIA 2013), where the BIA held that a derivative is grandfathered if the spouse or child relationship is established by the INA Sec. 245(i) deadline of April 30, 2001. For example, where an F4 petition is filed by a U.S. citizen for his sister in December 1997, and the sister marries in June 2000, the spouse should be considered a grandfathered derivative beneficiary because the relationship was established before the 245(i) deadline of April 30, 2001.

3a8082e126