USCIS to Require COVID-19 Vaccine for Refugee and Immigrant Applicants

The CDC, together with USCIS, will require COVID-19 vaccinations for refugee and immigrant applicants starting on October 1, 2021. The Department of Health & Human Services issued an alert for physicians to note the designation of COVID-19 as a Class A Inadmissible Condition. The alert stated that the U.S. Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP) has now recommended the vaccination for the general U.S. population and therefore it now meets the vaccination criteria for refugee or immigrant applicants.

The notice also advises:

  • If a COVID-19 vaccine listed for emergency use by the World Health Organization (WHO) or licensed or authorized for emergency use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is available to the applicant in the country where the medical examination is conducted, the eligible applicant must complete the COVID-19 vaccine series.
  • Applicants who are too young to receive the vaccine, have a medical contraindication to the vaccine, or who do not have access to one of the approved COVID-19 vaccines in their country will not be required to receive the vaccine.
  • Individuals may apply for an individual waiver based on religious or moral convictions with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
    (USCIS).

Question: I’ve already taken my medical exam and sent it to USCIS, but my I-485 is still pending. Will I have to get another exam? 

The alert states that this policy goes into effect for individuals receiving their medical examinations from a Civil Surgeon or Panel Physician on or after October 1, 2021. Medical exams that are completed prior to this date are not required to demonstrate proof of receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.

Question: I need to provide updated medicals but USCIS hasn’t issued an RFE yet or my priority date is not yet current. Should I get the vaccine? 

Whether you are choosing to interfile your medicals or wait for an RFE, you may want to consider getting the vaccine so that both doses (if applicable) can be completed by the time your priority date is current or when USCIS requests medicals in an RFE. You should check with your healthcare provider before taking or refraining from taking any medical actions.

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