Update on May 21, 2026 USCIS Policy Memo Framing AOS as “Extraordinary Relief”

On May 21, 2026, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) issued Policy Memorandum PM-602-0199 (“Policy Memo”) that purports to severely restrict the availability of the Congressionally created Adjustment of Status (in-country green card application) (“AOS”) process by casting  AOS  as “extraordinary relief.” See our previous post on the Policy Memo here.

The week after the May 21, 2026 Policy Memo, an anonymous DHS spokesperson informed the New York Times that the Policy Memo would not result in a widespread change to how USCIS adjudicates Adjustment of Status applications, and that the Policy Memo was “‘just a reminder to officers of their discretionary authority, which has always existed on a case-by-case basis.’” The DHS spokesperson refused to be named in the article. Read the New York Times article here.

Since the Policy Memo was released, our office and numerous colleagues have seen USCIS grant several AOS applications in the absence of any extraordinary circumstances.  However, there are also reports of delays in final AOS adjudication.  We will continue to monitor this policy development and provide updates as we receive them.