3 min readMay 22, 2026 10:36 PM IST
The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced a new policy memo stating that foreign nationals staying in the United States temporarily and seeking permanent residency will have to return to their home countries to apply for a Green Card through consular processing.
In a statement issued by USCIS on Friday, the agency said the policy is aimed at reinforcing what it described as the “original intent of the law” and ensuring that immigration rules are followed through the established system of overseas visa processing handled by the US Department of State.
The move affects non-immigrants such as international students, temporary workers and tourists who are in the US on short-term visas. Under the policy, individuals seeking adjustment of status to become lawful permanent residents would ordinarily need to leave the US and complete the process at a US consular office abroad, unless there are what the agency called “extraordinary circumstances”.
The USCIS said officers will continue to examine cases individually and consider all relevant information before deciding whether an exception is warranted.
Aliens looking for Green Card must return to home country
Describing the reasoning behind the decision, USCIS spokesman Zach Kahler said the US immigration framework treats temporary visas as short-term arrangements tied to a defined purpose, after which individuals are expected to leave the country once their permitted stay expires.
Kahler said people staying in the US on temporary visas and seeking permanent residency would now generally be required to complete the Green Card application process from their country of origin, unless exceptional situations apply.
He further said the change is intended to align the immigration system more closely with existing law and discourage misuse of procedural gaps.
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According to the USCIS, processing such applications outside the United States would reduce the burden on the agency and allow it to focus resources on other categories, including naturalisation applications and visas for victims of violent crimes and human trafficking.
An alien who is in the U.S. temporarily and wants a Green Card must return to their home country to apply.
This policy allows our immigration system to function as the law intended instead of incentivizing loopholes.
The era of abusing our nation’s immigration system is over. https://t.co/ofyEYGPDLC
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) May 22, 2026
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) also reiterated the position in a social media post, stating that temporary visa holders wanting a Green Card “must return to their home country to apply”.
“The era of abusing our nation’s immigration system is over,” the DHS said in its post.
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