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Is your case stuck at the National Visa Center with no interview in sight? You are not alone. Thousands of applicants are waiting months—or even years—for their visa interviews to be scheduled. The good news is that you may have options. In this video, we discuss three proven strategies that could help push your NVC case forward.

Why are so many cases stuck at the National Visa Center for months—or even years?

The problem is a perfect storm of overwhelming case volume, limited availability of interview appointments, staffing shortages, and delays at U.S. consulates worldwide.

Even after a case is documentarily complete and ready to move forward, it can remain at the NVC for months—or longer—until the appropriate embassy has an available interview slot.

Sweeping visa restrictions have made the backlogs even worse. The Trump administration has fully or partially restricted entry and visa issuance for nationals of 39 countries, while immigrant visa issuance has been separately paused for nationals of 75 countries.

Although U.S. embassies may remain open and continue scheduling some interviews, affected visas generally cannot be issued while these restrictions remain in place.

The result is thousands of applicants left in limbo, with no clear timeline and little information about when their cases will finally move forward.

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Imagine you are a green card holder planning summer travel with your family. You take your vacation, enjoy your trip, and return to the United States expecting to come home. But at the port of entry, CBP sends you to secondary inspection.

You have no criminal convictions. You only have pending charges — allegations that have not yet been proven. Still, CBP officers do not immediately allow you back into the country. Suddenly, your ability to reenter the United States is uncertain.

This is not science fiction. This is the reality created by a new Supreme Court decision that could make international travel riskier and more complicated for green card holders returning to the United States.

New Court Decision

That scenario is exactly why the Supreme Court’s decision in Blanche v. Lau matters. In that case, the Court held that a green card holder returning from international travel may face serious problems at the airport based on certain pending or alleged criminal conduct, even before there is a conviction.

The ruling does not mean that every pending charge will automatically result in denial of entry. However, it gives CBP and DHS more authority to treat certain returning green card holders as applicants seeking admission for the first time, rather than lawful permanent residents simply coming back home.

Before Lau

Before Blanche v. Lau, a lawful permanent resident generally had the right to return to the United States after temporary travel abroad, especially for trips under one year. In most cases, a green card holder only needed to answer questions confirming their identity and permanent resident status.

However, that right was not absolute. Immigration law has long allowed CBP to treat a green card holder as an “applicant for admission” in certain situations.

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Are you applying for an immigrant visa and want to know when your priority date will become current? Then you won’t want to miss our analysis of the July 2026 Visa Bulletin.

In this video, attorney Jacob Sapochnick explains what you can expect to see in terms of the movement of the family-sponsored and employment-based visa categories next month.

Adjustment of Status Chart

For adjustment of status filings to permanent residence in the month of July, USCIS will continue using the Dates for Filing Chart for family-sponsored categories only.

For employment-based categories, USCIS will also continue using the Final Action Dates Chart.

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The new USCIS memo is finally showing its true colors.

Imagine coming to the U.S. legally, spending years doing everything right, and finally applying for your green card—only to be denied at the interview. Not because you are ineligible, but because a USCIS officer used the new USCIS memo to deny your case as a matter of discretion.

That’s exactly what happened in Michael’s case.

Real-Life Example: Green Card Denied Under the New USCIS Memo

Michael came to the United States legally 15 years ago on an F-1 student visa. Like many international students, he had plans to study, build a future, and follow the rules.

But life got difficult. Due to financial hardship and mental health struggles, Michael was unable to finish school. As a result, he fell out of F-1 status. To survive, he worked for a short period without authorization.

Years later, Michael married a U.S. citizen and applied for his green card through marriage.

At his green card interview, USCIS did not question whether their marriage was real. The problem was something else.

The officer told Michael that his green card would be denied under the new USCIS memo—not because he lacked eligibility through marriage, but because of the officer’s discretionary review of his past immigration violations. Continue reading

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Good news for thousands of immigrants whose cases have been stuck in limbo: USCIS has resumed processing green card applications for nationals from 39 countries after a federal court ordered the agency to stop enforcing policies that had frozen thousands of cases.

For months, affected applicants faced uncertainty as green card applications, work permits, naturalization requests, and other immigration benefits remained stalled. Now, those cases are moving forward again.

But before anyone celebrates too soon, there’s a catch.

The federal government has already appealed the court’s ruling, meaning this legal battle is far from over. While USCIS is currently required to process these applications, future court decisions could change the landscape once again.

It’s also important to understand what this ruling does—and does not—do. The court ordered USCIS to resume adjudicating cases, but it did not order the agency to approve them. Applicants must still meet all eligibility requirements under U.S. immigration law.

Additionally, the judge’s order does not affect the separate temporary suspension of immigrant visa processing for nationals of 75 countries, which remains in effect.

For individuals and families who have spent months waiting for updates, this decision offers a long-awaited opportunity to move their cases forward. Employers may also begin seeing progress on petitions and applications that were previously stalled.

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On May 21, 2026, USCIS issued Policy Memorandum PM-602-0199, signaling a major change in how green card applications filed inside the United States (known as Adjustment of Status) may be reviewed. The memo emphasizes that Adjustment of Status (AOS) is not an automatic benefit, even when an applicant meets all legal eligibility requirements.

Instead, USCIS officers are instructed to conduct a broader discretionary review known as a “totality of the circumstances” evaluation to consider whether the applicant should complete the immigrant visa process abroad through a U.S. consulate instead.

The policy effectively shifts AOS from being viewed as a routine pathway for eligible applicants to being treated as an “extraordinary” discretionary form of relief.

What’s changed: USCIS officers are directed to weigh both positive and negative factors on a case-by-case basis when deciding whether to approve a green card application.

The memo will lead to increased scrutiny at green card interviews, and the issuance of more requests for evidence. Certain applicants may even be forced to pursue consular processing abroad rather than adjusting status from within the United States.

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 If you’re in the United States on a temporary visa and hope to become a permanent resident, recent changes in how USCIS reviews green card applications could impact your case.

On May 22, 2026, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that temporary visa holders seeking green cards should leave the United States and complete their immigration process through consular processing in their home countries, instead of applying for adjustment of status.

Does this mean adjustment of status is no longer an option? No. Although the government has emphasized that individuals seeking to immigrate to the United States should generally obtain immigrant visas through consular processing abroad, adjustment of status remains available as a discretionary pathway to lawful permanent residence.

What is Adjustment of Status?

For years, adjustment of status has been one of the most commonly used and reliable pathways for immigrants already living in the United States to apply for a green card. The process typically involves filing Form I-485, remaining in the United States while the application is pending, attending an interview, and ultimately receiving a final decision.

With limited exceptions, adjustment of status is generally not available for those who entered the country illegally.

USCIS’ announcement has not eliminated the ability to apply for adjustment of status, but the agency has created new obstacles for green card holders to obtain approval.

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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services recently announced that it will lift holds on the adjudication of green cards and other immigration-benefit requests for a select group of individuals.

As part of these exemptions, USCIS has lifted holds on some family petitions filed by U.S. citizens, intercountry adoptions, rescheduled naturalization oath ceremonies, asylum applications from lower-risk countries, work authorization requests, special immigrant visas, refugee registrations for South African nationals, applications associated with medical physicians, and cases that completed enhanced security vetting through Operation PARRIS.

This means that nationals who were previously subject to the “75-country pause” are no longer affected by the suspension and may resume normal processing of their immigration applications if they fall within one of the above categories.

Unfortunately, if you do not fall within one of the exempted categories, the adjudication of your green card and immigrant visa application will remain on hold.

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The Republican-backed Senate has just introduced a $72 billion immigration enforcement bill— a massive federal spending package focused on expanding immigration enforcement across the United States.

Republicans are using the budget reconciliation process, allowing the bill to pass with a simple majority vote and avoid a Democratic filibuster. However, the legislation has encountered procedural obstacles after the Senate parliamentarian ruled that parts of the proposal violated Senate reconciliation rules.

The key provisions of the spending proposal include:

  • Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE): Over $38 billion for ICE operations, expanded detention capacity, deportation flights, and artificial intelligence capabilities.
  • Customs & Border Protection (CBP): $26 billion for border security and patrol operations.
  • Department of Homeland Security (DHS): $5 billion designated to remove individuals who do not qualify for benefits.
  • Department of Justice (DOJ): $1.5 billion to hire more judges and increase prosecutions.
  • White House Upgrades: An additional $1 billion set aside for the Secret Service to make security upgrades for the President and his cabinet

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Starting April 27, 2026, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) implemented a new enhanced FBI security screening process that is affecting the adjudication of immigration benefit requests that require finger-print based background checks. The update requires USCIS officers to conduct additional background vetting before approving eligible cases.

Under the new policy, officers must resubmit certain pending applications for expanded FBI fingerprint and criminal history checks and place cases on hold until the updated review is completed. The change is expected to impact a range of immigration filings, including adjustment of status (green card) applications, asylum cases, naturalization applications, employment authorization documents, and some family-based petitions.

Who is Impacted

The temporary delays primarily affect applicants whose fingerprints were submitted before April 27, as USCIS is now reprocessing those records through the updated vetting system. Newly filed applications may also experience longer processing times while the agency works through the increased review requirements.

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