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Grace period for mailing I-485s to old USCIS addresses ends Nov. 9
USCIS moved the filing location for Form I-485 and several related forms on Oct. 7. Packages postmarked by Nov. 9 can still go to a former address; after that, applicants must follow the new lockbox table, and only the 09/18/26 edition of the form is accepted.
Green card applicants who file on paper have one more week to rely on an outdated mailing address. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services changed the filing location for Form I-485, the application to register permanent residence or adjust status, on Oct. 7 and gave filers a 30-day grace period. Packages postmarked on or before Nov. 9 and sent to any prior filing location will still be accepted.
The Oct. 7 move was not limited to the green card form. According to the agency's lockbox update log, the filing locations for Form I-765 for work permits, Form I-131 for travel documents, Form I-539 for extending or changing nonimmigrant status and the I-601 waiver application changed the same day, all with the same Nov. 9 cutoff.
Where employment-based and asylum cases go now
For applicants with a pending or approved Form I-140 employer petition, and for asylees and refugees, the correct address depends on the state of residence and is split among three USCIS lockboxes in Dallas, Phoenix and Chicago. Anyone filing Form I-485 together with an I-140 sends the package to Dallas, unless premium processing is requested; in that case the address in the I-140 instructions applies.
The Elgin, Illinois lockbox no longer appears in that table. A filing guide published in May by immigration platform Lighthouse listed New York, New Jersey, Virginia, Massachusetts, Maryland, the District of Columbia and other Northeastern states under Elgin. In the current USCIS table, New York residents file in Dallas, New Jersey and Virginia residents in Phoenix, and the remaining former Elgin states in Chicago.
| USCIS lockbox | States (employment-based, asylee and refugee I-485) |
|---|---|
| Phoenix | Arizona, California, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia |
| Chicago | Connecticut, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, Ohio, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin |
| Dallas | All other states, including New York, Texas, Florida and Georgia, plus Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, other territories and Armed Forces addresses |
Family-based applicants, such as spouses and parents of U.S. citizens, follow a separate USCIS lockbox chart that also assigns addresses by state of residence.
No grace period for the old form
The address grace period does not cover the form itself. USCIS published a revised edition of Form I-485 dated 09/18/26 to align it with the public charge final rule, and it rejects the 01/20/25 and 09/04/26 editions for anything submitted on or after Sept. 18. Applicants who printed their forms weeks ago should confirm that every page carries the new edition date.
What to check before mailing
Because the right address depends on both the eligibility category and the state, it is worth opening the USCIS direct filing page on the day a package goes out. Some applicants can avoid the mail entirely, since USCIS now offers online filing of Form I-485 for certain applicants and representatives. Those who file at a lockbox may also find that their receipt notice lacks an A-Number; the agency says it will send the number in a second notice a few days after accepting the application.
Photos: Tdorante10/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0); USCIS
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