USCIS waived the COVID-19 vaccination requirement for adjustment-of-status applicants
Effective January 22, 2025, USCIS waived the COVID-19 vaccination requirement for all adjustment-of-status applicants. Civil surgeons no longer need to document COVID-19 vaccination status on Form I-693, and USCIS will not issue an RFE or NOID based on missing COVID-19 vaccination documentation.
Sourcing and corrections follow our editorial standards.
On January 22, 2025, USCIS waived the COVID-19 vaccination requirement for all adjustment-of-status applicants. The change applies to all Form I-485 filings adjudicated on or after that date.
In practice: civil surgeons no longer need to document COVID-19 vaccination status when completing Form I-693, and USCIS will not issue a Request for Evidence (RFE) or Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID) on the basis of missing COVID-19 vaccination documentation. All other vaccination requirements that pre-dated COVID remain in place.
Filers with pending I-693s missing COVID vaccination documentation no longer need to amend them.
Why it matters here
If your I-485 was waiting on a COVID-related RFE or you delayed filing because of the COVID vaccination question, this removes one common source of friction in the AOS process. CasePredictor's I-485 page now reflects this in the 'Documents to file' section and FAQ.
Sources & further reading
Official government sources are marked. We do not republish full articles - follow these links for the complete announcement and primary text.
- OfficialUSCIS — Form I-693 Instructions
- OfficialUSCIS — Policy Manual Updates
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