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USCIS Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, is a form used by individuals who are already in the United States and wish to apply for lawful permanent resident status, commonly known as obtaining a Green Card. This form is one of the final steps in the process for immigrants who are eligible to adjust their status from a temporary visa holder, refugee, or asylee to a permanent resident without having to return to their home country to complete visa processing.
The form requires detailed information about the applicant’s immigration history, personal background, and eligibility basis for adjusting status. It is crucial for those seeking to change their status to permanent residency, enabling them to live and work in the U.S. indefinitely. The submission of Form I-485 is often accompanied by supporting documents and other forms depending on the applicant’s specific circumstances, such as family relationships, employment offers, or special eligibility categories.
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USCIS has service centers that accept the USCIS Form I-485 in different American states. To get the most current information on where to send your papers, visit the institution’s site. You should file the document in paper form; visit the post office in your area to send the envelope. You may also use certain delivery services (like FedEx or DHL).
Before you submit the document, ensure that you have chosen the correct address. Those who file papers to the wrong locations receive them back and have to file again. Besides the list of addresses, USCIS also suggests its filing tips you shall check to get the best result while applying.
Get ready to pay a significant fee to file the document. The fee depends on the applicant's age and on whether a child files together with a parent; check the current fee with the USCIS fee calculator before you file.
Biometric services are included in the fee; there is no separate biometric payment. Lastly, refugees of any age are not required to pay fees for filing.
What it is: Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, is for a person in the United States to apply for lawful permanent resident status.[2]
Who signs: You (or your signing authority) must properly complete your application.[2]
You must be physically present in the United States to file this application.[2]
Whether you are a principal or derivative applicant, you must file your own Form I-485.[2]
Photographs You must submit two identical color passport-style photographs of yourself taken recently.[2]
Government-Issued Identity Document with Photograph Applicants should submit a photocopy of a government-issued identity document (for example, passport (even if expired), driver's license, or military identification document) that has their photograph.[2]
Birth Certificate Unless otherwise specified, applicants must submit a photocopy of their birth certificate issued by the appropriate civil authority from their country of birth. USCIS will only accept a birth certificate which lists at least one parent.[2]
If you are required to submit a Form I-693, or a partial Form I-693 (such as the Vaccination Record), you must submit it with your Form I-485.[2]
Enter your Current Legal Name. Do not provide a nickname.
Provide all other names you have ever used, including your family name at birth, other legal names, nicknames, aliases, and assumed names.
Do you have an Alien Registration Number (A-Number)? If you answered “Yes,” provide your A-Number.
You will only have a USCIS Online Account Number (OAN) if you previously filed a form that has a receipt number that begins with IOE.
You must provide a valid mailing address in the United States in Part 1.
Is this your current mailing address? If you answered “No,” provide your current mailing address.
Have you resided at your current address for at least 5 years? If you answered "No," provide your prior address(es) for the last 5 years. Use the space provided in Part 14. Additional Information, if necessary.
If the SSA ever issued a Social Security card to you in your name or a previously used name such as your maiden name, then you must enter the Social Security Number (SSN) from your card in Item Number 19.[2]
NOTE: For more information to determine if you are eligible under CSPA, see the Who May File Form I-485 section of these Instructions.
Select only one box for how you are filing Form I-485: Principal Applicant or Derivative Applicant. For Derivative Applicant, provide the following information about the principal applicant.
Common mistake: You must select ONLY ONE category. If you are filing as a derivative applicant, select the appropriate box based on the category under which the principal applicant is applying or has applied. See the Form I-485 Instructions for more information, including any Additional Instructions that relate to the immigrant category you select.
I am requesting an exemption from submitting an Affidavit of Support Under Section 213A of the INA (Form I-864 or Form I-864EZ) because (select only one):
If you are not required by statute to submit an Affidavit of Support Under Section 213A of the INA, nor are you required to request an exemption, select Item Number 1.e.
If you required to submit an Affidavit of Support Under Section 213A of the INA, select Item Number 1.f.[2]
Provide ALL of your employment and educational history for the last 5 years as indicated in the Instructions. Provide your current employment or school attended first. Include periods of self-employment, unemployment, or retirement. For each period of unemployment or retirement, list source of financial support. If you have additional employment or educational history, use the space provided in Part 14.
Choose the answer that you think is correct in Part 9. If you answer "Yes" to any questions (or if you answer "No," but are unsure of your answer), provide an explanation of the events and circumstances in the space provided in Part 14.
For Item Numbers 22. - 41., you must answer "Yes" to any question that applies to you, even if your records were sealed or otherwise cleared, or even if anyone, including a judge, law enforcement officer, or attorney, told you that you no longer have a record.
Each alien who is subject to the public charge ground of inadmissibility in INA section 212(a)(4) must complete Item Numbers 57. - 64.
If you fall under one of the exempt categories listed below in Part 9, please select the exempt category, and skip Item Numbers 57. - 64.
If you do not fall under one of the exempt categories listed below in Part 9, select “I do not fall under any of the exempt categories listed above and complete Item Numbers 57. - 64.”
If you selected an exempt category in Item Number 56., go to Item Number 65.
You must sign and date your application and, if applicable, provide your daytime telephone number, mobile telephone number, and email address.
Common mistake: USCIS will not accept a stamped or typewritten name in place of any signature on this application. If your application is not signed, or if the signature is not valid, USCIS will reject your application.
If you are under 14 years of age, your parent or legal guardian may sign the application on your behalf. A legal guardian may also sign for a mentally incompetent person.
By signing you certify, under penalty of perjury, that you provided or authorized all of the responses and information contained in and submitted with your application, you read and understand or, if interpreted to you in a language in which you are fluent by the interpreter listed in Part 11., understood, all of the responses and information contained in, and submitted with, your application, and that all of the responses and the information are complete, true, and correct.[2]
For all sections of this application, if you need to provide any additional information or are instructed to provide an explanation, or if you need extra space to complete any item within this application, use the space provided in Part 14. Additional Information or attach a separate sheet of paper.
If you need more space than what is provided, you may make copies of this page of Part 14 to complete and file with this application or attach a separate sheet of paper. Type or print your name and A-Number (if any) at the top of each sheet; indicate the Page Number, Part Number, and Item Number to which your answer refers; and sign and date each sheet.[2]
Type or print legibly in black ink.[2]
NOTE TO ALL APPLICANTS: If you do not completely fill out this application or fail to submit required documents listed in the Instructions, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may reject or deny your application.
Answer all questions fully and accurately. If a question does not apply to you (for example, if you have never been married and the question asks, “Provide the name of your current spouse”), type or print “N/A,” unless otherwise directed.[2]
If your answer to a question which requires a numeric response is zero or none (for example, “How many children do you have” or “How many times have you departed the United States”), type or print “None,” unless otherwise directed.[2]
Common mistake: NOTE: Do not complete Part 13. until the USCIS Officer instructs you to do so at the interview.
You must notify USCIS no later than 10 days after you change your address.[2]
Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, is for a person in the United States to apply for lawful permanent resident status. Read through and follow these Instructions and all instructions as written on the application.[2]
See Form G-1055, available at www.uscis.gov/forms, for specific information about the fees applicable to this form.[2]
Please see the USCIS website for the most current information about where to file your Form I-485 application, including if you are currently in exclusion, deportation, or removal proceedings.[2]
If you knowingly and willfully falsify or conceal a material fact or submit a false document with your Form I-485, you will face severe penalties provided by law and may be subject to criminal prosecution.[2]
Who May Not Be Eligible to Adjust Status? You are generally ineligible for adjustment of status under INA section 245(a) if one or more adjustment bars in the INA apply to you.[2]
[1] Form I-485 (Edition 09/18/26), Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (the Official source link on this page).
[2] Instructions for Form I-485 (09/18/26), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.