USCIS To Require Updated Forms (Not Available Yet) as of October 15, 2019
September 30, 2019
Today, the American Lawyers Association (AILA) issued a practice alert (AILA Doc. 19093035) indicating that the USCIS will not accept current versions of the following forms starting October 15, 2019:
- Form I-485
- Form I-129
- Form I-539
- Form I-864 and Form I-864EZ
Per AILA, as of October 15 the USCIS will only accept editions of the forms that have been revised. However, USCIS has not yet published the final versions of these revised editions. The agency has published draft versions of the revised forms, but the extent to which the final versions will mirror the draft versions is unknown. Similarly, USCIS has published only a draft version of Form I-944, Declaration of Self-Sufficiency, which all adjustment of status applicants who are subject to the public charge ground of inadmissibility must submit in conjunction with Form I-485 as of October 15, per the public charge final rule published August 14, 2019.
USCIS's failure to timely publish these revised and new forms substantially impairs the ability of employers, attorneys and applicants to prepare for the rule's imminent implementation.
A request for injunction seems warranted, though not guaranteed to be approved. In the meantime, employers, attorneys and applicants are left scrambling to prepare for new forms, without knowing what those forms will look like.
