Source: https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/8/245.1
Timestamp: 2018-04-23 11:52:38
Document Index: 705732057

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 245', '§ 245', '§ 245', '§ 274', '§ 212', '§ 212', '§ 214', 'art 103', '§ 214', '§ 214', 'arts 235', '§ 245', 'art 245']

8 CFR 245.1 - Eligibility. | US Law | LII / Legal Information Institute
CFR › Title 8 › Chapter I › Subchapter B › Part 245 › Section 245.1
(a)General. Any alien who is physically present in the United States, except for an alien who is ineligible to apply for adjustment of status under paragraph (b) or (c) of this section, may apply for adjustment of status to that of a lawful permanent resident of the United States if the applicant is eligible to receive an immigrant visa and an immigrant visa is immediately available at the time of filing of the application. A special immigrant described under section 101(a)(27)(J) of the Act shall be deemed, for the purpose of applying the adjustment to status provisions of section 245(a) of the Act, to have been paroled into the United States, regardless of the actual method of entry into the United States.
(b)Restricted aliens. The following categories of aliens are ineligible to apply for adjustment of status to that of a lawful permanent resident alien under section 245 of the Act, unless the alien establishes eligibility under the provisions of section 245(i) of the Act and § 245.10, is not included in the categories of aliens prohibited from applying for adjustment of status listed in § 245.1(c), is eligible to receive an immigrant visa, and has an immigrant visa immediately available at the time of filing the application for adjustment of status:
(10) Any alien who was ever employed in the United States without the authorization of the Service or who has otherwise at any time violated the terms of his or her admission to the United States as a nonimmigrant, except an alien who is an immediate relative as defined in section 201(b) of the Act or a special immigrant as defined in section 101(a)(27)(H), (I), (J), or (K) of the Act. For purposes of this paragraph, an alien who meets the requirements of § 274a.12(c)(9) of this chapter shall not be deemed to have engaged in unauthorized employment during the pendency of his or her adjustment application.
(c)Ineligible aliens. The following categories of aliens are ineligible to apply for adjustment of status to that of a lawful permanent resident alien under section 245 of the Act:
(1) Any nonpreference alien who is seeking or engaging in gainful employment in the United States who is not the beneficiary of a valid individual or blanket labor certification issued by the Secretary of Labor or who is not exempt from certification requirements under § 212.8(b) of this chapter;
(2) Except for an alien who is applying for residence under the provisions of section 133 of the Immigration Act of 1990, any alien who has or had the status of an exchange visitor under section 101(a)(15)(J) of the Act and who is subject to the foreign residence requirement of section 212(e) of the Act, unless the alien has complied with the foreign residence requirement or has been granted a waiver of that requirement, under that section. An alien who has been granted a waiver under section 212(e)(iii) of the Act based on a request by a State Department of Health (or its equivalent) under Pub. L. 103-416 shall be ineligible to apply for adjustment of status under section 245 of the Act if the terms and conditions specified in section 214(l) of the Act and § 212.7(c)(9) of this chapter have not been met;
(i) In the case of a K-1 fianceé(e) under section 101(a)(15)(K)(i) of the Act or the K-2 child of a fianceé(e) under section 101(a)(15)(K)(iii) of the Act, the alien is applying for adjustment of status based upon the marriage of the K-1 fianceé(e) which was contracted within 90 days of entry with the United States citizen who filed a petition on behalf of the K-1 fianceé(e) pursuant to § 214.2(k) of this chapter;
(i)Commencement of proceedings. The period during which the alien is in deportation, exclusion, or removal proceedings or judicial proceedings relating thereto, commences:
(ii)Termination of proceedings. The period during which the alien is in exclusion, deportation, or removal proceedings, or judicial proceedings relating thereto, terminates:
(iii)Exemptions. This prohibition shall no longer apply if:
(iv)Request for exemption. No application or fee is required to request the exemption under section 245(e) of the Act. The request must be made in writing and submitted with the Form I-485. Application for Permanent Residence. The request must state the basis for requesting consideration for the exemption and must be supported by documentary evidence establishing eligibility for the exemption.
(v)Evidence to establish eligibility for the bona fide marriage exemption. Section 204(g) of the Act provides that certain visa petitions based upon marriages entered into during deportation, exclusion or related judicial proceedings may be approved only if the petitioner provides clear and convincing evidence that the marriage is bona fide. Evidence that a visa petition based upon the same marriage was approved under the bona fide marriage exemption to section 204(g) of the Act will be considered primary evidence of eligibility for the bona fide marriage exemption provided in this part. The applicant will not be required to submit additional evidence to qualify for the bona fide marriage exemption provided in this part, unless the district director determines that such additional evidence is needed. In cases where the district director notifies the applicant that additional evidence is required, the applicant must submit documentary evidence which clearly and convincingly establishes that the marriage was entered into in good faith and not entered into for the purpose of procuring the alien's entry as an immigrant. Such evidence may include:
(vi)Decision. An application for adjustment of status filed during the prohibited period shall be denied, unless the applicant establishes eligibility for an exemption from the general prohibition.
(vii)Denials. The denial of an application for adjustment of status because the marriage took place during the prohibited period shall be without prejudice to the consideration of a new application or a motion to reopen a previously denied application, if deportation or exclusion proceedings are terminated while the alien is in the United States. The denial shall also be without prejudice to the consideration of a new application or motion to reopen the adjustment of status application, if the applicant presents clear and convincing evidence establishing eligibility for the bona fide marriage exemption contained in this part.
(viii)Appeals. An application for adjustment of status to lawful permanent resident which is denied by the district director solely because the applicant failed to establish eligibility for the bona fide marriage exemption contained in this part may be appealed to the Associate Commissioner, Examinations, in accordance with 8 CFR part 103. The appeal to the Associate Commissioner, Examinations, shall be the single level of appellate review established by statute.
(1)Lawful immigration status. For purposes of section 245(c)(2) of the Act, the term “lawful immigration status” will only describe the immigration status of an individual who is:
(2)No fault of the applicant or for technical reasons. The parenthetical phrase other than through no fault of his or her own or for technical reasons shall be limited to:
(i) Inaction of another individual or organization designated by regulation to act on behalf of an individual and over whose actions the individual has no control, if the inaction is acknowledged by that individual or organization (as, for example, where a designated school official certified under § 214.2(f) of this chapter or an exchange propram sponsor under § 214.2(j) of this chapter did not provide required notification to the Service of continuation of status, or did not forward a request for continuation of status to the Service); or
(3)Effect of departure. The departure and subsequent reentry of an individual who was employed without authorization in the United States after January 1, 1977 does not erase the bar to adjustment of status in section 245(c)(2) of the Act. Similarly, the departure and subsequent reentry of an individual who has not maintained a lawful immigration status on any previous entry into the United States does not erase the bar to adjustment of status in section 245(c)(2) of the Act for any application filed on or after November 6, 1986.
(e)Special categories -
(1)Alien medical graduates. Any alien who is a medical graduate qualified for special immigrant classification under section 101(a)(27)(H) of the Act and is the beneficiary of an approved petition as required under section 204(a)(1)(E)(i) of the Act is eligible for adjustment of status. An accompanying spouse and children also may apply for adjustment of status under this section. Temporary absences from the United States for 30 days or less, during which the applicant was practicing or studying medicine, do not interrupt the continuous presence requirement. Temporary absences authorized under the Service's advance parole procedures will not be considered interruptive of continuous presence when the alien applies for adjustment of status.
(3)Special immigrant juveniles. Any alien qualified for special immigrant classification under section 101(a)(27)(J) of the Act shall be deemed, for the purpose of section 245(a) of the Act, to have been paroled into the United States, regardless of the alien's actual method of entry into the United States. Neither the provisions of section 245(c)(2) nor the exclusion provisions of sections 212(a)(4), (5)(A), or (7)(A) of the Act shall apply to a qualified special immigrant under section 101(a)(27)(J) of the Act. The exclusion provisions of sections 212(a)(2)(A), (2)(B), (2)(C) (except for so much of such paragraph as related to a single offense of simple possession of 30 grams or less of marijuana), (3)(A), (3)(B), (3)(C), or (3)(E) of the Act may not be waived. Any other exclusion provision may be waived on an individual basis for humanitarian purposes, family unity, or when it is otherwise in the public interest; however, the relationship between the alien and the alien's natural parents or prior adoptive parents shall not be considered a factor in a discretionary waiver determination.
(f)Concurrent applications to overcome grounds of inadmissibility. Except as provided in 8 CFR parts 235 and 249, an application under this part shall be the sole method of requesting the exercise of discretion under sections 212(g), (h), (i), and (k) of the Act, as they relate to the inadmissibility of an alien in the United States. No fee is required for filing an application to overcome the grounds of inadmissibility of the Act if filed concurrently with an application for adjustment of status under the provisions of the Act of October 28, 1977, and of this part.
(g)Availability of immigrant visas under section 245 and priority dates -
(1)Availability of immigrant visas under section 245. An alien is ineligible for the benefits of section 245 of the Act unless an immigrant visa is immediately available to him or her at the time the application is filed. If the applicant is a preference alien, the current Department of State Bureau of Consular Affairs Visa Bulletin will be consulted to determine whether an immigrant visa is immediately available. A preference immigrant visa is considered available for accepting and processing if the applicant has a priority date on the waiting list which is earlier than the date shown in the Bulletin (or the Bulletin shows that numbers for visa applicants in his or her category are current). Information concerning the immediate availability of an immigrant visa may be obtained at any Service office.
(2)Priority dates. The priority date of an applicant who is seeking the allotment of an immigrant visa number under one of the preference classes specified in section 203(a) or 203(b) of the Act by virtue of a valid visa petition approved in his or her behalf shall be fixed by the date on which such approved petition was filed.
(h)Conditional basis of status. Whenever an alien spouse (as defined in section 216(g)(1) of the Act), an alien son or daughter (as defined in section 216(g)(2) of the Act), an alien entrepreneur (as defined in section 216A(f)(1) of the Act), or an alien spouse or child (as defined in section 216A(f)(2) of the Act) is granted adjustment of status to that of lawful permanent residence, the alien shall be considered to have obtained such status on a conditional basis subject to the provisions of section 216 or 216A of the Act, as appropriate.
(i)Adjustment of status from K-3/K-4 status. An alien admitted to the United States as a K-3 under section 101(a)(15)(K)(ii) of the Act may apply for adjustment of status to that of a permanent resident pursuant to section 245 of the Act at any time following the approval of the Form I-130 petition filed on the alien's behalf, by the same citizen who petitioned for the alien's K-3 status. An alien admitted to the United States as a K-4 under section 101(a)(15)(K)(iii) of the Act may apply for adjustment of status to that of permanent residence pursuant to section 245 of the Act at any time following the approval of the Form I-130 petition filed on the alien's behalf, by the same citizen who petitioned for the alien's parent's K-3 status. Upon approval of the application, the director shall record his or her lawful admission for permanent residence in accordance with that section and subject to the conditions prescribed in section 216 of the Act. An alien admitted to the U.S. as a K-3/K-4 alien may not adjust to that of permanent resident status in any way other than as a spouse or child of the U.S. citizen who originally filed the petition for that alien's K-3/K-4 status.
(Title I of Pub. L. 95-145 enacted Oct. 28, 1977 ( 91 Stat. 1223), sec. 103 of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1103). Interpret or apply secs. 101, 212, 242 and 245 ( 8 U.S.C. 1101, 1182, 1252 and 1255))
[ 30 FR 14778, Nov. 30, 1965]
For Federal Register citations affecting § 245.1, see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and at www.fdsys.gov.
The following are ALL rules, proposed rules, and notices (chronologically) published in the Federal Register relating to 8 CFR Part 245 after this date.
FR Doc. 2013-17387
8 CFR 245.1 — Eligibility.
8 CFR 204.2 — Petitions for Relatives, Widows and Widowers, and Abused Spouses and Children.
8 CFR 245.6 — Interview.
8 CFR 245.10 — Adjustment of Status Upon Payment of Additional Sum Under Section 245(i).
8 CFR 245.2 — Application.