Waiver of Adjustment of Status Interview Becoming More Common
February 15, 2006

With the exception of marriage based filings, as of late the Citizenship and Immigration Service is more frequently approving, without interview, more categories of adjustment of status filings (for those undergoing permanent residence processing in the U.S.). The CIS policy of waiving the interview for “clean” cases was first implemented in recent years, but mainly for employment-based filings – where the basis of the application is a job offer.

As of late, however, it appears this practice is becoming more common for family based filings where the family relationship at issue is clearly established in the file, and there appears to be no question as to the authenticity of the documentation presented. In cases where the applicant’s eligibility might be in question because of a criminal or medical issue, or a significant immigration violation, CIS will likely schedule the matter for interview so the issue can be further explored.