USCIS Just Made Green Cards (A Lot) Harder
Here’s why you need a good immigration lawyer now more than ever.
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What Just Happened To Green Cards in The United States?
This is the biggest change to green card cases in a generation.
And it just took effect.
On May 21, 2026, USCIS issued Policy Memorandum PM-602-0199. It is the most significant change to how green card cases are decided in a generation. Cases that used to be routine are no longer straightforward. Even strong cases now need real strategy. And nobody, including USCIS itself, knows yet how far this will go or how long it will last.
USCIS Policy Memorandum PM-602-0199 did not change the law. It did something more disruptive: it changed how every USCIS officer is going to read every file from now on. Cases that would have been approved regularly since the 1950s will now face heightened scrutiny. Cases that would have needed mild documentation will now need an entire equities package. And vanilla cases now need real fighting.
What the memo actually says
Quoting the memo itself: applicants who entered as nonimmigrants or parolees and now seek adjustment may need…
“to offset [adverse factors] by a showing of unusual or even outstanding equities. The absence of adverse factors, by itself, does not demonstrate such unusual or outstanding equities.”
USCIS Policy Memorandum PM-602-0199 (May 21, 2026)
In plain English
Having a clean record is no longer enough. You now have to prove positive equities, things like deep U.S. ties, U.S. citizen family, employment history, tax compliance, community involvement, and hardship. The bar moved.
What that means in practice
Pending I-485 cases are affected immediately.
The memo took effect on May 21, 2026 and applies to every file currently sitting in a USCIS queue. Officers apply the new standard when they pick up your case, not the standard that existed when you filed.
“Vanilla” cases are not vanilla anymore.
A clean marriage-based green card filing with standard forms used to typically sail through. That expectation is no longer reliable. The same cases now need an affirmative equities showing.
Even H-1B and L-1 holders are exposed.
The memo acknowledges dual intent, but says in its own words that “maintaining lawful status in a dual intent nonimmigrant category is not sufficient, on its own, to warrant a favorable exercise of discretion.”
More guidance is coming.
USCIS has explicitly said more category-specific memos are on the way. We do not yet know which groups will be targeted, or when. But we will get all of our clients ready.
Nobody knows how long this lasts.
This is a policy memo, not a statute. Future administrations can change it. Federal courts may overrule it. But for now, we have to deal with it.
“In 30 years of immigration law, I have never seen anything like this. But we will do what we always do. We will advocate for our clients.”
Harlan York, Founder · Best Lawyers 5x “Immigration Lawyer of the Year”
Harlan’s Honest Take
After 30 years, here is what I am telling clients this week.
“In 30 years of practicing immigration law, I have never seen anything like this. Ever.”
“Strong cases are still being approved. But the documentation we need to file with them now is different from before.”
“We don’t know how long it lasts. What I do know is that this firm has spent thirty years winning the hard cases that other lawyers wouldn’t take or couldn’t win. That is not changing.”
Harlan York, Founder
If you take one thing from this page: the lawyers who navigate this process best are going to be the ones who already have a track record on hard cases.
Where Do You Stand?
Three Different Groups Are Reading This Right Now
And the right move depends on which one you are.
Card 01: Your I-485 Is Already Pending
You filed weeks or months ago. You are refreshing your USCIS case status and the news at the same time.
The reality: Your case is now harder than it was when you filed. The memo applies to your file the moment an officer picks it up. That is not the same as a denial, but it is a fact. You may receive an RFE or NOID asking you to prove positive equities. The quality of your response matters more than it would have six months ago.
Action: Do not withdraw. Do not file anything else without legal advice. Get a real review of your file before USCIS sends you the request.
Card 02: You Were About to File
Marriage case. Or an employer about to sponsor. You were ready to go, and now you’re uncertain what to do.
The reality: If you file the standard forms with no equities package, you are entering a new world without armor. The decision is not whether to file. The decision is whether to file the wrong way or to file with a strategy.
Action: Don’t file blind. Don’t wait indefinitely either. Get the strategy right before you submit.
Card 03: Your Case Has Complications
An overstay. Work without authorization. An old arrest. An F-1 you stayed past. A B-1/B-2 you got married on.
The reality: Yours is the case the memo seems written for. It is also the kind of case this firm has spent 30 years winning. Building an unusual-or-outstanding-equities package is exactly what we do for I-601 hardship waivers, and the standard the memo invokes is the same one we have always answered.
Action: This is when a real immigration lawyer matters. Don’t file alone. Don’t give up.
Why You Need The Right Immigration Lawyer Now
Why Harlan York & Associates? We made our name on the hard cases.
For 30 years, this firm has built its reputation on cases other lawyers turned down. Cases with overstays. Cases with denials in the file. Cases where the client had been told there was nothing left to try. We took them, we worked on them, and we won, time and time again.
That is exactly the kind of practice the new USCIS memo is going to require for almost every green card case from here on out. Cases that used to be straightforward now need the same level of strategy, documentation, and fight that we have always put into the difficult ones.
This is not a system you should walk into alone, and it is not a system for lawyers who dabble. Immigration law is all we do. We are not closing real estate deals on the side. We are not handling personal injury cases between filings. We are six attorneys, focused on this work, for decades. When the system throws a punch, we are the team that has been hitting back, for a generation.
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Notable clients: Garry Kasparov (World Chess Champion), Peter Rono (Olympic Gold Medalist), Agustín Fernández (Oscar winning filmmaker), La India (Grammy nominated singer-songwriter), thousands of families from 125 countries.
“Harlan York is a Street Fighter.”
Garry Kasparov, Greatest Chess Player of All Time
What To Do This Week
Your Next Steps
01.
Do not withdraw a pending application based on a headline.
The memo does not retroactively invalidate filed cases. Withdrawing voluntarily forfeits work permits, travel authorization, and a risk of deportation. Pause, breathe, get advice.
02.
Understand the consular trap before “just going home.”
The State Department has tightened where you can interview. Read our guide: Where Can My Spouse or Fiancée Get a Visa? The Complete 2026 Embassy Restrictions Guide. The “just go home” advice ignores half the picture.
03.
Audit your immigration history.
Every gap, every job, every entry. The new memo means officers will look harder at status gaps, unauthorized employment, and visa-purpose inconsistencies. Knowing what’s in your file before USCIS does is the single most important preparation step.
04.
Build your equities package now, not later.
Tax transcripts, employment letters, U.S. citizen family ties, community involvement, hardship evidence. The memo signals that a clean record alone is not enough. Building this file proactively is faster than scrambling to respond to an RFE.
05.
If your case has a waiver issue, get the waiver framework right.
Many people with overstays or prior violations may need an inadmissibility waiver in addition to the new discretionary showing. See: Why Immigration Waivers Get Denied, and How to Win the Refile. The evidence package matters more than ever.
06.
Get one consultation with an immigration-only firm.
Even thirty minutes with a lawyer who does only this work, not a generalist who “also handles” immigration alongside real estate and personal injury, will tell you whether your situation is risky. The cost of being wrong about that judgment is permanent.
Talk to a Real Immigration Lawyer. Your green card is worth a fight. We fight.
If your case used to be straightforward, it likely isn’t anymore, and you need a team that has handled the challenging cases for 30 years. The cost of one consultation is small. The cost of withdrawing the wrong case, filing the wrong way, or panicking into a flight back home is permanent.
Contact Our Immigration Lawyers Now
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