Reviewed by André Matias, Esq., Principal Attorney
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If you came to Arlington on an H-1B, an L-1 or a J-1 — routes often attached to federal contractors, universities and the international organizations along the Rosslyn–Ballston corridor — the questions that decide your adjustment case are different from a family one.
The J-1 problem worth raising early
If you entered on a J-1, you may be subject to a two-year home residency requirement — an obligation to return to your home country for two years before you can adjust status, change to certain other categories, or receive an immigrant visa.
It does not apply to every J-1. It depends on your program's funding, your field, and your home country's skills list. But where it does apply, it is not a formality and it is not waived by wanting to stay: a waiver is its own application with its own grounds.
If there is a J-1 anywhere in your history, raise it in the first conversation rather than the fifth. It changes what is possible, and it is easier to plan around than to discover late.
What is local
The legal standard is federal — adjustment of status works the same everywhere. What Arlington decides is logistics:
- Your interview is assigned by ZIP code. Check the USCIS Office Locator.
- Biometrics for most Northern Virginia residents are taken locally rather than across the river.
- Virginia's immigration courts sit in Annandale and Sterling — see the EOIR court listing.
Arlington is minutes from Washington on Metro, which makes attending an interview one of the simpler logistical problems on this list.
Gaps in status
If you have changed jobs, this is the other thing worth raising. An H-1B transfer that slips, an L-1 that ends with a posting, or an OPT period that lapses between roles each create exposure a family-based applicant never encounters. The fix, where there is one, depends on how long the gap was and what you were doing during it.
USCIS publishes live processing times per office and form type, and they move. Check the current figure for your own office on the USCIS processing times tool.
Government fees
Adjustment of status carries several government filing fees, and they change. Confirm current amounts on the USCIS Fee Schedule (Form G-1055) or the USCIS Fee Calculator.
These are government filing fees only. They are not Altius Law's attorney fees.