Under U.S. immigration law, refugees and asylees who are granted asylum or refugee status must apply for adjustment of status to become lawful permanent residents (LPRs) after one year of continuous physical presence in the United States. However, it is impossible for a refugee to satisfy both this filing requirement and the physical presence requirement at the time of filing for adjustment of status if the refugee has traveled outside the United States during the 1-year period after admission as a refugee. This created situations in which refugee files for adjustment of status as required by the statute, but the refugee is unable to satisfy the physical presence requirement. In order to create consistency in the processing, USCIS updated policy guidance to clarify both asylees and refugees are required to satisfy the 1-year requirement at the time USCIS adjudicates the adjustment of status application, rather than at the time of filing.
Remzi G. Kulen Esq
Kulen Law Firm P.C.
