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By Billal Rahman
Immigration Reporter
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A jump in green card availability for spouses of lawful permanent residents has opened a potential filing window for many married couples, just weeks before a Trump administration policy change that immigration attorneys say could bring greater scrutiny of applicants' financial circumstances.
The State Department's August Visa Bulletin advanced the F2A final action date from January 1, 2025, to July 22, 2026, for most countries, an advance of roughly 18 months. For Mexico, the date moved from January 1, 2024, to July 22, 2025. F2A is the family-sponsored green card category for spouses and unmarried children under 21 of lawful permanent residents.
The development comes ahead of a September 18 change to the federal government’s public charge policy. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is rescinding the Biden administration’s 2022 regulatory framework and restoring broader discretion for officers to determine whether an applicant is likely to become a public charge.
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which is overseen by DHS, will also implement a revised Form I-485, the application used by immigrants seeking permanent residence from within the United States. USCIS said older editions submitted on or after September 18 will not be accepted.
Immigration attorneys said the F2A movement could allow more spouses of green card holders to file applications and move pending cases closer to approval, but cautioned that eligibility depends on an applicant’s individual circumstances and that the favorable dates could move backward.
“This type of movement happens every few years as immigration in this category ebbs and flows,” Charles H. Kuck, founding partner of Kuck and Baxter Immigration, told Newsweek.
Kuck said a significant number of couples may now be able to pursue adjustment of status in the United States rather than complete immigrant visa processing through a U.S. consulate abroad.
“This is good news for them and their spouses,” he said.
Newsweek reached out to USCIS for comment via email.
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USCIS is allowing family-sponsored applicants to use the more favorable Dates for Filing chart during August. F2A is listed as current on that chart for all countries, meaning otherwise eligible applicants may submit Form I-485 regardless of their priority date. A green card cannot be approved, however, unless the applicant’s priority date is earlier than the applicable final action date.
Filing an adjustment application can also allow eligible applicants to seek interim benefits such as employment authorization while their cases are pending.
"This is indeed an unusual, significant jump," immigration attorney Saja Raoof told Newsweek.
The August movement does not guarantee faster decisions. USCIS processing backlogs may prevent some eligible cases from being decided before the Visa Bulletin changes again, and a pending case cannot be approved during any subsequent period in which a visa number is unavailable.
The State Department said filing and final action dates have advanced across several categories because immigrant visa issuance rates for people from certain countries have declined following administration actions. It warned that retrogression could be necessary if additional demand emerges or those policies change.
The shifting dates are particularly important for spouses of lawful permanent residents, who do not receive all the procedural allowances available to spouses of U.S. citizens. Applicants in the F2A category generally must have maintained lawful status to adjust status under the usual rules, and unauthorized employment or status violations can affect eligibility.
The approaching public charge change adds another consideration for applicants deciding when to file.
Under federal immigration law, a person seeking a visa, admission, or adjustment of status may be found inadmissible if the government determines that the person is likely at any time to become a public charge. The 2022 framework limited the benefits considered in that determination and prescribed factors for officers to examine. DHS’s new rule removes much of that framework and permits a broader, individualized review under the totality of the applicant’s circumstances.
The final rule says officers may consider the statutory factors of age, health, family status, assets, resources, financial status, education and skills. DHS also says it will consider receipt of means-tested public benefits on or after the effective date, along with other case-specific information.
The rule does not single out spouses or marriage-based applications. Many marriage-based applicants are nevertheless subject to the public charge ground and are already required to provide Form I-864, an affidavit of support generally completed by the sponsoring spouse.
Kuck said the removal of the 2022 framework makes it difficult to predict how individual USCIS officers will assess cases beyond the existing affidavit-of-support requirement.
“There will be increased scrutiny of the citizen petitioner and their financial status,” Kuck said, adding that younger couples may be particularly concerned because they often have lower incomes and fewer assets.
USCIS has not said that every marriage-based applicant will face additional documentation requirements, and the practical effect will depend partly on the guidance issued before implementation.
The September 18 effective date also creates a procedural deadline. USCIS says a revised edition of Form I-485 will be published and that older versions postmarked or filed electronically on or after September 18, 2026, will be rejected. The agency's Form I-485 page currently lists the January 20, 2025, edition, meaning applicants should check for an updated form before submitting a case on or after the effective date.
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Several attorneys said eligible couples may prefer to apply before the new framework takes effect, but cautioned against filing a rushed or incomplete application.
“If a couple is eligible today, and with individual legal advice from an experienced immigration attorney, there’s probably no reason to wait,” Raoof said. “Filing before September 18 means the narrower public charge standard is applied.”
"Even if your family is financially comfortable, it's preferable to file under the old norms, using established, familiar form versions, rather than to get scrutinized under the new public charge rule while the adjudicators themselves are still figuring out what they want to see," Loren Locke, an attorney at Locke Immigration Law, told Newsweek.
"It's totally foreseeable that the new rule will introduce new complexity that will make the government process adjustment status of applications even slower than they already do."
Whether a couple can or should file before then depends on factors including lawful status, unauthorized employment, admission or parole, any immigration violations, and the availability of required evidence.
For some spouses of lawful permanent residents, the August Visa Bulletin has created an opportunity to move forward with green card applications. Whether that window remains open may depend on future Visa Bulletin movements and how USCIS applies its revised public-charge framework after September 18.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: John Fitzpatrick and Sam Wilson.
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