The short answer
- Applicants born in China are not on the January 1 processing hold list (PM-602-0194, covering 39 countries). The interview waiver rules for employment-based I-485s did not change this year.
- What is actually new is the May 21 memo (PM-602-0199): it tells officers to weigh "why didn't you go home and use consular processing" as a factor, while stating plainly that filing an I-485 while in a dual-intent status like H-1B is not a violation.
- When a case is slow, it is mostly the queue and visa number availability, not something you did wrong (for the visa-number side, see The Visa Bulletin Didn't Move, but USCIS Says "No Visa Numbers Available"). A transfer to a field office does not mean an interview is certain; a second interview is usually about a specific thing to check, with layoffs a common reason, and what you need then is a new offer in the same or a similar job and Supplement J.
This week, four hot threads on the green card board of a Chinese-language immigration forum asked the same kind of question: after you file the I-485 (Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, the form for getting a green card inside the US), your case is transferred to a field office (a local USCIS office). Then what? Some people have heard nothing for months, some have been called in for a second interview, and some want to know whether a transfer to the local office means an interview is certain.
In 2026 these questions have a new backdrop. USCIS issued two memos this year. One re-emphasized that adjustment of status is a discretionary benefit; the other put a processing hold on applicants from dozens of countries. This article first explains those two documents clearly, then compares them against real timelines from the forum: what changed because of policy, what has always been this way, and what comes down to luck.
The two 2026 documents
First: the January 1 processing hold (PM-602-0194). USCIS put all kinds of pending applications from nationals of 39 countries on hold, to re-review them case by case and re-interview when needed. The list comes from Presidential Proclamation 10998, covering the countries under full or partial entry bans. China is not on the list. The forum talk of "enhanced screening starting April 27": we could not find any document with that date on the USCIS website. What we did find was a March 30 update on strengthened screening, focused on high-risk countries, asylum and the diversity visa lottery. Slower processing for Chinese applicants can't be attributed to that document.
Second: the May 21 discretion memo (PM-602-0199). The title is long, but it carries the gist: "Adjustment of Status is a Matter of Discretion and Administrative Grace, and an Extraordinary Relief that Permits Applicants to Dispense with the Ordinary Consular Visa Process." In Chinese-language circles this memo has been passed around as "from now on everyone has to go back home to get their green card." That is not what it says. We read all six pages. The key points:
- It "reminds" officers that adjustment of status under Section 245 has always been discretionary, and that the applicant bears the burden of showing why it should be granted. This is not new law; it is a restatement.
- In categories where consular processing is available, it tells officers to include in the overall weighing the fact that the applicant could have gone home for consular processing but chose to adjust inside the US. The memo says failure to comply with the conditions of nonimmigrant status, and failure to depart when required, are "highly relevant to this analysis."
- It explicitly includes one sentence that matters for H-1B and L-1 holders: applying for adjustment of status is not inconsistent with maintaining nonimmigrant status in a dual-intent category. A footnote adds that merely maintaining dual-intent status is not, by itself, enough to count as a favorable factor.
- It requires that a denial list the positive and negative factors in writing and explain why the negative factors outweigh the positive ones.
- It says USCIS "may" issue more specific guidance for certain categories or groups. As of today, there has been no follow-up guidance on employment-based immigration.
So for an employment-based applicant on H-1B who filed on time and has no gaps in status, this memo changes the officer's wording and checklist of considerations, not eligibility. For people who have overstayed, worked without authorization, or entered on a tourist visa and then filed an I-485, it puts the risk down on paper.
What does a transfer to a field office mean? Is an interview certain?
The I-485 first goes through preliminary processing at the National Benefits Center (NBC): fingerprints, background checks, and whether the file is complete. After that, the case is transferred to a field office for a final decision. Which office you get depends on where you live and on each office's workload. On the forum, some people were transferred to an office that isn't their local one; threads call this "non-local."
A transfer does not mean an interview. Volume 7, Part A, Chapter 5 of the USCIS Policy Manual is the interview guidance, and it states that interviews for employment-based I-485s can be waived at the officer's discretion. We went through the Policy Manual's 2026 update log item by item, and this chapter was not changed this year. Some law firm articles online say "starting in 2026, all green card interviews are back." We could not find that statement in any official USCIS document.
What people report on the forum matches the rules. One thread asked, "Once you're transferred to the local office, does that basically mean an interview?" Both replies said not necessarily. One person said their case was handled at a field office and approved without an interview; the other said that if a case is simple and clean, there's probably nothing to interview about.
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Timelines: real progress from one group
A September 16 thread was set up to track the group whose dates became current in the July bulletin and whose cases were transferred to a field office on August 20. It got 37 replies in two days. Here are a few with complete information:
| Category | Date became current | Transferred to FO | Latest progress |
|---|---|---|---|
| EB-3 | June 2026 | Same batch | Approved September 11, card being produced September 15 (New Jersey) |
| EB-2 | August 2026 | August 20 | Status update September 16, not yet approved (New Jersey) |
| Not stated | July 2026 | Already in San Jose in March | Interviewed June 29, several status updates since, not yet approved |
| Not stated | July 2026 | August 21 | Multiple status updates September 15 and 16, not yet approved (San Jose) |
Same group: some were approved in a month, others are still waiting. One reply put it well: "No step of the 485 process is first in, first out." Different offices, different officers, and different levels of case complexity mean people who filed together can end up months apart. That was true before 2026 too.
The threads are also full of terms like "SU," "FTA0" and "FTA1," which refer to status changes that third-party tracking tools read from the USCIS system. These are patterns worked out by users, not anything USCIS says, so we won't explain what they mean.
What's the deal with a second interview?
Another September 16 thread: an EB-1B (outstanding professor or researcher) applicant filed last October and was interviewed in San Jose in May for more than an hour. He was asked about Communist Party and Youth League membership, how his schooling in China was funded, and his marriage. The officer didn't say he was approved but said the case had no obvious problems. In July he was laid off. In September he suddenly got a notice to come back for another interview next month.
The most-liked take in the replies: the second interview is very likely related to the layoff. When an employer withdraws an H-1B, USCIS is notified at the same time, so USCIS knows when he lost his job. The second interview is about whether he has a new job and a Supplement J.
That take has a basis in the rules. An employment-based I-485 is built on the employer's I-140 (Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers) and a valid job offer. Under Section 204(j) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, once an I-485 has been pending for 180 days, the applicant can move to a new employer in "the same or a similar occupational classification" and use Supplement J to confirm the new job offer with USCIS. Volume 7, Part E, Chapter 5 of the Policy Manual lists the factors for deciding what counts as "similar": the DOL occupational classification code, specific duties, job title, required skills, required education, and pay.
The flip side: if there is no new job, there is no job offer to confirm. One reply was blunt: "If you say at the interview that you don't have a job, it's basically a denial on the spot." That's based on experience, but it points in the same direction as the rules.
So a second interview is not bad news in itself. It is USCIS giving you a chance to submit your new job. In the original poster's situation, the most important thing isn't rehearsing answers. It's getting an offer for the same or a similar position before the interview and having Supplement J ready.
Which forum claims hold up
"Enhanced screening starting April 27." We can't find any official document with that date. China is not on the January hold list. Cases slow down for many reasons, and pinning it on a date that can't be verified doesn't help you judge your situation.
"From now on you have to go home to get your green card." The May memo doesn't say that. It says officers should factor this in, while stating clearly that filing an I-485 in a dual-intent status like H-1B is not a violation.
"A transfer to the field office means an interview." Not necessarily. The rules haven't changed, and people on the forum have been approved outright after a transfer.
"A second interview means they're going to deny you." Most second interviews are about checking something specific, and a layoff is a common reason. If you have a new job and a Supplement J, it's your chance to get the case finished.
What you can do now
- If you're still waiting: once your case is past USCIS's published processing time, you can submit a case inquiry. Our case tracker can help you keep an eye on your status. Asking your congressional representative for help can get you a status update, but it won't speed things up.
- If your I-485 has been pending for 180 days and you changed jobs along the way: file Supplement J on your own; don't wait for USCIS to ask.
- If you were laid off: getting a new offer before USCIS receives your employer's withdrawal notice is the single thing most likely to change the outcome. For how the 60-day grace period after an H-1B layoff is counted, see this case study.
- If you haven't reached the I-485 stage yet and are stuck at PERM, see Can You Still Get PERM Done in 2026?
- Before the interview: go back over every "yes" and "no" you answered on the I-485. A second interview often covers whatever the first one didn't finish.
Sources: USCIS memos PM-602-0194 (January 1, 2026) and PM-602-0199 (May 21, 2026); USCIS Policy Manual Volume 7, Part A, Chapter 5 (interviews), Volume 7, Part E, Chapter 5 (job portability), and the update log; Immigration and Nationality Act Section 204(j); USCIS's March 30 update on strengthened screening; four threads and their replies on a Chinese-language immigration forum from September 14 to 16, 2026. Quotes from the memos are translated from the English originals. Forum content reflects personal experience, not official information.
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