U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will introduce a new edition of Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, on September 18, 2026. Starting that same day, applicants filing for adjustment of status must use the new 09/18/26 edition. USCIS will reject older editions that are postmarked or electronically submitted on or after September 18.
The change creates a firm filing cutoff for anyone preparing an adjustment of status application. It also coincides with major changes to how USCIS evaluates the public charge ground of inadmissibility, which will also take effect on September 18, 2026.
The timing of the filing determines which edition is acceptable:
There is no grace period allowing both editions to be used after the transition date.
Applicants should therefore pay close attention to the edition date printed on the form, particularly if an adjustment application is being prepared close to the September 18 deadline.
USCIS's currently published Form I-485 is dated 01/20/25, confirming the edition applicants should use before the new version becomes mandatory.
The revised form is connected to the Department of Homeland Security's new Public Charge Ground of Inadmissibility final rule.
DHS published a final rule rescinding the 2022 public charge regulations and restoring broader discretion for immigration officers when determining whether certain applicants are likely to become a public charge. The final rule becomes effective September 18, 2026 and applies to adjustment of status applications postmarked or electronically submitted on or after that date.
The new Form I-485 is designed to collect information needed for USCIS to apply this updated public charge framework. Compared with the current edition, the revised form includes changes related to public benefits and information USCIS may consider when reviewing public charge inadmissibility.
This means the September 18 change is more than a routine form update: it aligns the adjustment-of-status application with a new adjudication framework taking effect on the same day.
The new Form I-485 requirement does not change CPT, Day 1 CPT, OPT, STEM OPT or H-1B rules themselves. It becomes relevant when someone in one of these statuses is eligible to file Form I-485 to adjust status to lawful permanent residence from inside the United States.
For example, an international professional who entered the United States as an F-1 student, later worked through OPT or STEM OPT, transitioned to H-1B status and is now eligible to file an employment-based green card application may eventually need Form I-485.
For applicants in that situation, the key issue is the filing date. A Form I-485 prepared on the current edition but submitted too late could be rejected simply because the edition is no longer accepted.
That can be particularly important in employment-based green card cases where filing eligibility may depend on visa availability and priority dates. Applicants preparing a September filing should verify the correct edition immediately before submitting their application rather than relying on a previously downloaded copy.
Applicants planning to file Form I-485 around the transition should first determine when their application will actually be postmarked or electronically submitted.
Those filing before September 18 should continue using the current USCIS-approved 01/20/25 edition. Applicants filing on or after September 18 should switch to the 09/18/26 edition once USCIS makes it available for filing.
Because USCIS has established a hard cutoff, applicants and attorneys preparing cases in advance should also review any saved or partially completed Form I-485 packets before submission. Using an outdated copy after the effective date can result in rejection and require the application to be filed again on the correct form.
Applicants should always download immigration forms directly from USCIS shortly before filing and check the edition date and filing instructions listed on the agency's website.