The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued an internal memorandum this Thursday stating that status adjustment — the process to obtain permanent residency within the country — will only be approved under "extraordinary circumstances," effectively requiring foreign nationals with temporary visas to return to their home country to process the Green Card through consular procedures.
The immigration attorney Liudmila Marcelo, interviewed this morning by Tania Costa for CiberCuba, described the measure as a "bombshell" and cautioned that the information was still preliminary: "What we are discussing today is preliminary, it’s what we are consuming, based on what just entered the networks about an hour ago."
The USCIS memorandum, dated May 21, instructs agency officers to severely limit approved adjustments of status within the country.
The third paragraph of the announcement, quoted by Marcelo, is explicit: "Non-immigrants such as students, temporary workers, and tourists come to the United States for a brief period and for a specific reason. Our system is designed for them to return to their country when their visit ends and for their visit not to serve as the first step to obtaining a green card."
The measure primarily affects those who entered with a tourist, student, or work visa and later found a family route—marriage to a U.S. citizen or petition by an adult child over 21 years old—to regularize their status through the so-called "complete package," which allowed for the simultaneous submission of the petition and the I-485 form without leaving the country. The memorandum also explicitly mentions individuals with paroles 212(d)(5).
"What they say is: if you are married to a citizen or your child is over 21, then go back to your country and complete the consular process. They won't let you do it here," Marcelo explained.
One of the most concerning points is that the document does not establish a start date, which raises uncertainty about whether the cases already submitted to USCIS will also be affected.
Marcelo also warned about the risk for those who have accumulated illegal presence while waiting in the country: "In my infinite faith, I would say that it seems like they are now being forced to leave when they could have done so from here before. I hope and aspire that this is not counted against them as having accumulated illegal presence."
If that exit triggers the computation of illegal presence, these individuals would need to apply for a pardon in order to return.
Regarding the Cuban Adjustment Act, Marcelo was cautious: "So far, I don't see any impact on the Cuban Adjustment Act because the Cuban Adjustment Act is another requirement."
That law requires a physical presence in U.S. territory for at least one year and one day, which makes it incompatible with any exit requirements. If the directive were to apply to Cubans as well, that migration route would effectively be eliminated.
The memorandum only applies to USCIS and does not include individuals undergoing proceedings before immigration courts: "This memorandum is only addressed to them and not to the courts," the attorney clarified.
Marcelo anticipated legal challenges: "They are making an incorrect analysis of the law, which makes me think that, as always, there will be lawsuits, and those lawsuits will then be in our favor."
This restriction adds to a sustained trend: according to data from the Cato Institute, residence approvals for Cubans fell by 99.8% between October 2024 and January 2026, dropping from 10,984 approvals in February 2025 to just 15 in January 2026. Marcelo summarized the situation bluntly: "This is very bad news, it is very bad news just like every Friday when it's not a holiday."
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