Money
Section 245: the adjustment bars, and what changed in 2026
Which past work or status gaps can block a green card application filed from inside the United States, the employment-based exception, and how USCIS has treated the whole question since May 2026.
published 9 June 2026 · checked 3 October 2026
Revised 3 October 2026. The first version of this page was built around a dollar figure that we could not trace to any immigration program, and it described § 245(c) in one line. We removed the figure. This version teaches the section itself, with the employment-based exception and the May 2026 USCIS memo.
The gap, named · our reading of the rule
INA Section 245 governs adjustment of status inside the U.S. and lists the bars that can stop an application. A stretch of unauthorised work or lapsed status can matter years later, when an entrepreneur applies for a green card from inside the country. This page reads the section as written and says where the reading is ours.
The Regulatory Framework
INA § 245(c) lists eight bars to adjustment. The two most entrepreneurs meet are (c)(2), working without authorisation or falling out of status, and (c)(8), unauthorised employment. Immediate relatives are outside (c)(2), and § 245(k) lets employment-based applicants (EB-1, EB-2, EB-3, EB-5) adjust despite (c)(2), (c)(7) and (c)(8) if the violations total 180 days or less since their last lawful admission. (8 U.S.C. 1255(c), (k), read 3 October 2026.)
Discretion since May 2026. Since 21 May 2026, USCIS policy treats adjustment of status as "extraordinary relief" granted as a matter of discretion, with consular processing as the ordinary route (Policy Memorandum PM-602-0199, 21 May 2026). Clearing the bars is no longer the whole question. Ask your attorney how the memo reads on your facts. We found no court order against it as of 3 October 2026 (OBSERVATION).
How entrepreneurs prepare for this conversation
- Step 1: Audit Immigration Compliance: Audit your stay history for unauthorized labor or status gaps before filing for adjustment of status.
- Step 2: Write down the days: List every period of unauthorised work or lapsed status since your last lawful admission, with dates, and take the total to your attorney, because § 245(k) turns on whether the violations total 180 days or less.
- Step 3: Ask how the May 2026 memo reads on your facts: Ask whether to plan for consular processing as well as adjustment.
Attorney Interrogation Sheet (What to Ask)
- Do any past activities trigger an adjustment bar under INA § 245(c)?
- Does my case qualify for § 245(k) relief, and how many days do my violations total?
- Does the May 2026 USCIS memo on adjustment of status (PM-602-0199) change whether I should plan for consular processing?
What this is not This piece quotes the published rule and says plainly where we are reading it rather than quoting it. It is not legal, tax or immigration advice, it creates no attorney–client relationship, and neither you nor we can apply it to your facts. Rules also move — check the date above, then take the questions in this piece to your own licensed attorney and CPA, who are the only people who can advise you.
Sources · primary law first, our own notes labelled as such
INA § 245, 8 U.S.C. 1255: adjustment of status statutory text. Read 3 October 2026.
8 CFR 245.1: eligibility requirements and bars. Not re-read on 3 October 2026.
USCIS Policy Memorandum PM-602-0199, 21 May 2026. Read 3 October 2026.
Own Yourself Now practice note, June 2026
Ownership and work authorisation are treated differently in the rules, and that difference is what this library is about. Everything here is written for people keeping the job that holds their status.
Put a number on it. Affordability Check
Then choose your route. The Immigrant Entrepreneur Cohort is four weeks, while employed, and it starts with exactly this question. See the next run →