On December 10, 2024, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a new edition of Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Resident or Adjust Status, which includes updates to the form’s questions and instructions. Beginning February 10, 2025, USCIS will accept only the edition of Form I-485 dated 10/24/2024 and will reject any older editions of Form I-485.

The new edition of Form I-485 features these major changes:

• • Applicants who need to submit a Form I-693, Report of Immigration Medical Examination and Vaccination Record, or a partial Form I-693 (such as a vaccination record), are now required to submit it with their Form I-485. If the applicant does not submit the Form I-693 with Form I-485 when it is required, the Form I-485 may be rejected;
• • Applicants who are exempt from filing a Form I-864, Affidavit of Support, are now required to request the exemption on the Form I-485 itself, rather than submitting a separate form; and
• • Questions about the “public charge” ground of inadmissibility have been updated to require an applicant to identify their immigrant category (i.e., spouse of U.S. citizen, refugee status, etc.) to assist USCIS in determining whether an applicant is exempt from this ground of inadmissibility.