Under the Adjustment of Status process, your partner changes their immigration status from either a temporary nonimmigrant status (or in some cases from being out of status) to become a lawful permanent resident while remaining in the United States. In this circumstance, the adjustment occurs through marriage to a U.S. Citizen who is willing to file an immigrant petition on their behalf.

In order to file for adjustment, the foreign national spouse must demonstrate that they were inspected and admitted or paroled into the United States and do not have any inadmissibility grounds (such as some types of criminal history, false claims to US citizenship, past misrepresentations to obtain a Visa or many other grounds). In order to obtain permanent resident status without having to return to their home country to apply for an immigrant visa at a United States abroad, Spouses of U.S. Citizens are eligible for adjustment of status to permanent residence once the US Citizen spouse files a petition on their behalf called the I-130, Petition for Alien Relative. The I-130 Petition, is typically filed at the same time (concurrently) as the Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or for Adjustment of Status.   For immigration purposes, the intending immigrant (or foreign national) is referred to as the ‘beneficiary’ of the application, while the U.S. Citizen spouse is referred to as the ‘petitioner’ of the I-130 application. The petitioner allows the beneficiary to apply for adjustment of status on the basis of their marital relationship (established with the filing of the I-130 Petition).