Green Card for an Afghan or Iraqi Translator or Interpreter
Alert: Information for Afghans Paroled into the United States due to the Humanitarian Crisis in Afghanistan and Applying for Adjustment of Status
Information for Afghans Paroled into the United States due to the Humanitarian Crisis in Afghanistan and Applying for Adjustment of Status
If you are an Afghan national or derivative family member (spouse or unmarried child younger than 21) with an approved Form I-360, Petition for Amerasian, Widow(er), or Special Immigrant, and you are applying for a Green Card after you were paroled into the United States due to the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, follow the instructions below to submit Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, to apply for lawful permanent residence.
Instructions:
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Complete a separate Form I-485 for each family member applying to adjust status.
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Application Type: In Part 2, Item 1.c., select the checkbox for “Certain Afghan or Iraqi national, Form I-360” and in Part 2, Item 3., enter the receipt number of your approved Form I-360 immigrant petition from the approval notice (Form I-797).
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Filing location: You must file your application only at the USCIS Phoenix lockbox address listed below. We will accept U.S. Postal Service, FedEx, UPS, and DHL deliveries.
USCIS
Attn: AFGHAN NFB (Box 21281)
1820 E. Skyharbor Circle S
Suite 100
Phoenix, AZ 85034-4850
- Package all Forms I-485 for your family in a single envelope.
- Complete Form G-1145, E-Notification of Application/Petition Acceptance, if you would like to receive e-notification when USCIS accepts your application.
- Fee Information: You do not have to pay the filing or biometric services fees for Form I-485 if you were paroled into the United States due to the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and are applying on the basis of an Afghan Special Immigrant.
Section 1059 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006 authorized up to 50 immigrant visas per year for Iraqi and Afghan nationals who worked directly with the U.S. armed forces or under chief of mission authority at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad or U.S. Embassy in Kabul as translators or interpreters. For the complete law, refer to Section 1059 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006 (Pub. L. 109-163, 119 Stat, 3136) as amended by Pub. L. 110-36, 121 Stat. 227. For more information on this program, see the USCIS Policy Manual.
You may be eligible to receive a Green Card as an Afghan or Iraqi translator or interpreter if:
- You were paroled or admitted as a nonimmigrant into the United States;
- You are physically present in the United States;
- You have an approved Form I-360, Petition for Amerasian, Widow(er), or Special Immigrant, under section 1059 (as an Afghan or Iraqi national who served as translator);
- There is a visa immediately available for you at the time you file Form I-485. (This occurs when your priority date for your immigrant category is current. For more information, visit our Visa Availability and Priority Dates page and the Department of State’s Visa Bulletin page.); and
- You are admissible to the United States for lawful permanent residence or are eligible for a waiver of inadmissibility or other form of relief.
If you entered the United States as a refugee, you cannot apply for a Green Card as an Afghan or Iraqi translator or interpreter. You must apply as a refugee. For more information, see our Green Card for Refugees page.
To obtain a Green Card as an Iraqi or Afghan translator or interpreter, whether you live inside or outside the United States, you must first file Form I-360, Petition for Amerasian, Widow(er), or Special Immigrant. For more information, see our Form I-360 page.
If You Live Outside the United States
If we approve your Form I-360, we will forward the approved petition to the Department of State for consular processing of the special immigrant visa. For more information, see our Consular Processing page.
If You Live Inside the United States
If we approve your Form I-360 and you did not enter the United States on a special immigrant visa, you must file Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, to obtain a Green Card.
Unless exempt, you are ineligible for adjustment of status if any of the bars to adjustment listed in section 245(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) apply to you.
You may be exempt from some of the bars to adjustment and eligible to adjust status even if you:
- Are now employed or have ever been employed in the United States without authorization;
- Are not in lawful immigration status on the date you file your application;
- Failed to continuously maintain your lawful status since entry into the United States; or
- Have ever violated the terms of a nonimmigrant visa after admission to the United States as a nonimmigrant.
If you are inadmissible to the United States, you may not adjust to lawful permanent resident status. You can find the grounds of inadmissibility in INA 212(a).
If you apply for lawful permanent resident status as a special immigrant Afghan or Iraqi translator or interpreter, these grounds of inadmissibility do not apply to you:
- Public charge (INA 212(a)(4)); and
- Labor certification (INA 212(a)(5)).
If you are inadmissible based on other grounds listed in INA 212(a), you may be eligible for a waiver or other form of relief. If we grant your waiver application or other form of relief, we may approve your application to adjust status.
You can learn more about waivers and other forms of relief by reading the instructions for Form I-601, Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility, and Form I-212, Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission into the United States After Deportation or Removal.
See the Checklist of Required Initial Evidence section of our Form I-485 page to see what evidence you must submit.
Generally, when you have a pending Form I-485, you may apply for authorization to work in the United States and to seek advance parole (advance permission to travel and be admitted to the United States upon your return). For more information, see our Employment Authorization and Travel Documents pages.