245.11—Adjustment of aliens in S nonimmigrant classification.

(a) Eligibility. An application on Form I-854, requesting that an alien witness or informant in S nonimmigrant classification be allowed to adjust status to that of lawful permanent resident, may only be filed by the federal or state law enforcement authority (“LEA”) (which shall include a federal or state court or a United States Attorney's Office) that originally requested S classification for the alien. The completed application shall be filed with the Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Department of Justice, who will forward only properly certified applications to the Commissioner, Immigration and Naturalization Service, for approval. Upon receipt of an approved Form I-854 allowing the S nonimmigrant to adjust status to that of lawful permanent resident, the alien may proceed to file with that Form, Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, pursuant to the following process.

(1) Request to allow S nonimmigrant to apply for adjustment of status to that of lawful permanent resident. The LEA that requested S nonimmigrant classification for an S nonimmigrant witness or informant pursuant to section 101(a)(15)(S) of the Act may request that the principal S nonimmigrant be allowed to apply for adjustment of status by filing Form I-854 with the Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, in accordance with the instructions on, or attached to, that form and certifying that the alien has fulfilled the terms of his or her admission and classification. The same Form I-854 may be used by the LEA to request that the principals nonimmigrant's spouse, married and unmarried sons and daughters, regardless of age, and parents who are in derivative S nonimmigrant classification and who are qualified family members as described in paragraph (b) of this section similarly be allowed to apply for adjustment of status pursuant to section 101(a)(15)(S) of the Act.

(2) Certification. Upon receipt of an LEA's request for the adjustment of an alien in S nonimmigrant classification on Form I-854, the Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, shall review the information and determine whether to certify the request to the Commissioner in accordance with the instructions on the form.

(3) Submission of requests for adjustment of status to the Commissioner. No application by an LEA on Form I-854 requesting the adjustment to lawful permanent resident status of an S nonimmigrant shall be forwarded to the Commissioner unless first certified by the Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division.

(4) Decision on request to allow adjustment of S nonimmigrant. The Commissioner shall make the final decision on a request to allow an S nonimmigrant to apply for adjustment of status to lawful permanent resident.

(i) In the event the Commissioner decides to deny an application on Form I-854 to allow an S nonimmigrant to apply for adjustment of status, the Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, and the relevant LEA shall be notified in writing to that effect. The Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, shall concur in or object to that decision. Unless the Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, objects within 7 days, he or she shall be deemed to have concurred in the decision. In the event of an objection by the Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, the matter will be expeditiously referred to the Deputy Attorney General for a final resolution. In no circumstances shall the alien or the relevant LEA have a right of appeal from any decision to deny.

(ii) Upon approval of the request on Form I-854, the Commissioner shall forward a copy of the approved form to the Assistant Attorney General and the S nonimmigrant, notifying them that the S nonimmigrant may proceed to file Form I-485 and request adjustment of status to that of lawful permanent resident, and that, to be eligible for adjustment of status, the nonimmigrant must otherwise:

(A) Meet the requirements of paragraph (b) of this section, if requesting adjustment as a qualified family member of the certified principal S nonimmigrant witness or informant;

(B) Be admissible to the United States as an immigrant, unless the ground of inadmissibility has been waived;

(C) Establish eligibility for adjustment of status under all provisions of section 245 of the Act, unless the basis for ineligibility has been waived; and

(D) Properly file with his or her Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, the approved Form I-854.

(b) Family members— (1) Qualified family members. A qualified family member of an S nonimmigrant includes the spouse, married or unmarried son or daughter, or parent of a principal S nonimmigrant who meets the requirements of paragraph (a) of this section, provided that:

(i) The family member qualified as the spouse, married or unmarried son or daughter, or parent (as defined in section 101(b) of the Act) of the principal S nonimmigrant when the family member was admitted as or granted a change of status to that of a nonimmigrant under section 101(a)(15)(S) of the Act;

(ii) The family member was admitted in S nonimmigrant classification to accompany, or follow to join, the principal S-5 or S-6 alien pursuant to the LEA's request;

(iii) The family member is not inadmissible from the United States as a participant in Nazi persecution or genocide as described in section 212(a)(3)(E) of the Act;

(iv) The qualifying relationship continues to exist; and

(v) The principal alien has adjusted status, has a pending application for adjustment of status or is concurrently filing an application for adjustment of status under section 101(a)(15)(S) of the Act.

(vi) Paragraphs (b)(1)(iv) and (v) of this section do not apply if the alien witness or informant has died and, in the opinion of the Attorney General, was in compliance with the terms of his or her S classification under section 245(i) (1) and (2) of the Act.

(2) Other family member. The adjustment provisions in this section do not apply to a family member who has not been classified as an S nonimmigrant pursuant to a request on Form I-854 or who does not otherwise meet the requirements of paragraph (b) of this section. However, a spouse or an unmarried child who is less than 21 years old, and whose relationship to the principal S nonimmigrant or qualified family member was established prior to the approval of the principal S nonimmigrant's adjustment of status application, may be accorded the priority date and preference category of the principal S nonimmigrant or qualified family member, in accordance with the provisions of section 203(d) of the Act. Such a spouse or child:

(i) May use the principal S nonimmigrant or qualified member's priority date and category when it becomes current, in accordance with the limitations set forth in sections 201 and 202 of the Act;

(ii) May seek immigrant visa issuance abroad or adjustment of status to that of a lawful permanent resident of the United States when the priority date becomes current for the spouse's or child's country of chargeability under the fourth employment-based preference classification;

(iii) Must meet all the requirements for immigrant visa issuance or adjustment of status, unless those requirements have been waived;

(iv) Is not applying for adjustment of status under 101(a)(15)(S) of the Act, is not required to file Form I-854, and is not required to obtain LEA certification; and

(v) Will lose eligibility for benefits if the child marries or has his or her twenty-first birthday before being admitted with an immigrant visa or granted adjustment of status.

(c) Waivers of inadmissibility. An alien seeking to adjust status pursuant to the provisions of section 101(a)(15)(S) of the Act may not be denied adjustment of status for conduct or a condition that:

(1) Was disclosed to the Attorney General prior to admission; and

(2) Was specifically waived pursuant to the waiver provisions set forth at section 212(d)(1) and 212(d)(3) of the Act.

(d) Application. Each S nonimmigrant requesting adjustment of status under section 101(a)(15)(S) of the Act must:

(1) File Form I-485, with the prescribed fee, accompanied by the approved Form I-854, and the supporting documents specified in the instructions to Form I-485 and described in 8 CFR 245.2. Secondary evidence may be submitted if the nonimmigrant is unable to obtain the required primary evidence as provided in 8 CFR 103.2(b)(2). The S nonimmigrant applying to adjust must complete Part 2 of Form I-485 by checking box “h-other” and writing “S” or “S-Qualified Family Member.” Qualified family members must submit documentary evidence of the relationship to the principal S nonimmigrant witness or informant.

(2) Submit detailed and inclusive evidence of eligibility for the adjustment of status benefits of S classification, which shall include:

(i) A photocopy of all pages of the alien's most recent passport or an explanation of why the alien does not have a passport; or

(ii) An attachment on a plain piece of paper showing the dates of all arrivals and departures from the United States in S nonimmigrant classification and the reason for each departure; and

(iii) Primary evidence of a qualifying relationship to the principal S nonimmigrant, such as birth or marriage certificate. If any required primary evidence is unavailable, church or school records, or other secondary evidence may be submitted. If such documents are unavailable, affidavits may be submitted as provided in 8 CFR 103.2(b)(2).

(e) Priority date. The S nonimmigrant's priority date shall be the date his or her application for adjustment of status as an S nonimmigrant is properly filed with the Service.

(f) Visa number limitation. An adjustment of status application under section 101(a)(15)(S) of the Act may be filed regardless of the availability of immigrant visa numbers. The adjustment of status application may not, however, be approved and the alien's adjustment of status to that of lawful permanent resident of the United States may not be granted until a visa number becomes available for the alien under the worldwide allocation for employment-based immigrants under section 201(d) and section 203(b)(4) of the Act. The alien may request initial or continued employment authorization while the adjustment application is pending by filing Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization. If the alien needs to travel outside the United States during this period, he or she may file a request for advance parole on Form I-131, Application for Travel Document.

(g) Filing and decision. An application for adjustment of status filed by an S nonimmigrant under section 101(a)(15)(S) of the Act shall be filed with the district director having jurisdiction over the alien's place of residence. Upon approval of adjustment of status under this section, the district director shall record the alien's lawful admission for permanent residence as of the date of such approval. The district director shall notify the Commissioner and the Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, of the adjustment.

(h) Removal under Nothing in this section shall prevent an alien adjusted pursuant to the terms of these provisions from being removed for conviction of a crime of moral turpitude committed within 10 years after being provided lawful permanent residence under this section or for any other ground under section 237 of the Act.

(i) Denial of application. In the event the district director decides to deny an application on Form I-485 and an approved Form I-854 to allow an S nonimmigrant to adjust status, the Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, and the relevant LEA shall be notified in writing to that effect. The Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, shall concur in or object to that decision. Unless the Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, objects within 7 days, he or she shall be deemed to have concurred in the decision. In the event of an objection by the Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, the matter will be expeditiously referred to the Deputy Attorney General for a final resolution. In no circumstances shall the alien or the relevant LEA have a right of appeal from any decision to deny. A denial of an adjustment application under this paragraph may not be renewed in subsequent removal proceedings.

Code of Federal Regulations

[60 FR 44269, Aug. 25, 1995; 60 FR 52248, Oct. 5, 1995, as amended at 62 FR 10384, Mar. 6, 1997]