[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 8, Volume 1]

[Revised as of January 1, 2006]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 8CFR209.2]



[Page 168-170]

 

                     TITLE 8--ALIENS AND NATIONALITY

 

               CHAPTER I--DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

 

PART 209_ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS OF REFUGEES AND ALIENS GRANTED ASYLUM

--Table of Contents

 

Sec. 209.2  Adjustment of status of alien granted asylum.



    The provisions of this section shall be the sole and exclusive 

procedure for adjustment of status by an asylee admitted under section 

208 of the Act whose application is based on his or her asylee status.

    (a) Eligibility. (1) Except as provided in paragraph (a)(2) of this 

section, the status of any alien who has been granted asylum in the 

United States may be adjusted by the director to that of an alien 

lawfully admitted for permanent residence, provided the alien:

    (i) Applies for such adjustment;



[[Page 169]]



    (ii) Has been physically present in the United States for at least 

one year after having been granted asylum;

    (iii) Continues to be a refugee within the meaning of section 

101(a)(42) of the Act, or is the spouse or child of a refugee;

    (iv) Has not been firmly resettled in any foreign country; and

    (v) Is admissible to the United States as an immigrant under the Act 

at the time of examination for adjustment without regard to paragraphs 

(4), (5)(A), (5)(B), and (7)(A)(i) of section 212(a) of the Act, and 

(vi) has a refugee number available under section 207(a) of the Act.



If the application for adjustment filed under this part exceeds the 

refugee numbers available under section 207(a) of the Act for the fiscal 

year, a waiting list will be established on a priority basis by the date 

the application was properly filed.

    (2) An alien, who was granted asylum in the United States prior to 

November 29, 1990 (regardless of whether or not such asylum has been 

terminated under section 208(b) of the Act), and is no longer a refugee 

due to a change in circumstances in the foreign state where he or she 

feared persecution, may also have his or her status adjusted by the 

director to that of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence 

even if he or she is no longer able to demonstrate that he or she 

continues to be a refugee within the meaning of section 10l(a)(42) of 

the Act, or to be a spouse or child of such a refugee or to have been 

physically present in the United States for at least one year after 

being granted asylum, so long as he or she is able to meet the 

requirements noted in paragraphs (a)(1)(i), (iv), and (v) of this 

section. Such persons are exempt from the numerical limitations of 

section 209(b) of the Act. However, the number of aliens who are natives 

of any foreign state who may adjust status pursuant to this paragraph in 

any fiscal year shall not exceed the difference between the per country 

limitation established under section 202(a) of the Act and the number of 

aliens who are chargeable to that foreign state in the fiscal year under 

section 202 of the Act. Aliens who applied for adjustment of status 

under section 209(b) of the Act before June 1, 1990, are also exempt 

from its numerical limitation without any restrictions.

    (b) Inadmissible Alien. An applicant who is inadmissible to the 

United States under section 212(a) of the Act, may, under section 209(c) 

of the Act, have the grounds of inadmissibility waived by the director 

(except for those grounds under paragraphs (27), (29), (33), and so much 

of (23) as relates to trafficking in narcotics) for humanitarian 

purposes, to assure family unity, or when it is otherwise in the public 

interest. An application for the waiver may be filed on Form I-602 

(Application by Refugee for Waiver of Grounds of Excludability) with the 

application for adjustment. An applicant for adjustment who has had the 

status of an exchange alien nonimmigrant under section 101(a)(15)(J) of 

the Act, and who is subject to the foreign resident requirement of 

section 212(e) of the Act, shall be eligible for adjustment without 

regard to the foreign residence requirement.

    (c) Application. An application for the benefits of section 209(b) 

of the Act may be filed on Form I-485, with the correct fee, with the 

director of the appropriate Service office identified in the 

instructions to the Form I-485. A separate application must be filed by 

each alien. Every applicant who is 14 years of age or older must submit 

a completed Form G-325A (Biographic Information) with the Form I-485 

application. Following submission of the Form I-485 application, every 

applicant who is 14 years of age or older will be required to execute a 

Form FD-258 (Applicant Fingerprint Card) at such time and place as the 

Service will designate. Except as provided in paragraph (a)(2) of this 

section, the application must also be supported by evidence that the 

applicant has been physically present in the United States for at least 

1 year. If an alien has been placed in deportation or exclusion 

proceedings, the application can be filed and considered only in 

proceedings under section 240 of the Act.

    (d) Medical examination. An alien seeking adjustment of status under



[[Page 170]]



section 209(b) of the Act 1 year following the grant of asylum under 

section 208 of the Act shall submit the results of a medical examination 

to determine whether any grounds of inadmissibility described under 

section 212(a)(1)(A) of the Act apply. Form I-693, Medical Examination 

of Aliens Seeking Adjustment of Status, and a vaccination supplement to 

determine compliance with the vaccination requirements described under 

section 212(a)(1)(A)(ii) of the Act must be completed by a designed 

civil surgeon in the United States and submitted at the time of 

application for adjustment of status.

    (e) Interview. Each applicant for adjustment of status under this 

part shall be interviewed by an immigration officer. The interview may 

be waived for a child under 14 years of age. The Service director having 

jurisdiction over the application will determine, on a case-by-case 

basis, whether an interview by an immigration officer is necessary to 

determine the applicant's admissibility for permanent resident status 

under this part.

    (f) Decision. The applicant shall be notified of the decision, and 

if the application is denied, of the reasons for denial. No appeal shall 

lie from the denial of an application by the director but such denial 

will be without prejudice to the alien's right to renew the application 

in proceedings under part 240 of this chapter. If the application is 

approved, the director shall record the alien's admission for lawful 

permanent residence as of the date one year before the date of the 

approval of the application, but not earlier than the date of the 

approval for asylum in the case of an applicant approved under paragraph 

(a)(2) of this section.



[46 FR 45119, Sept. 10, 1981, as amended at 56 FR 26898, June 12, 1991; 

57 FR 42883, Sept. 17, 1992; 63 FR 30109, June 3, 1998]