A busy September for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is underway, with the agency simultaneously expanding its international footprint in East Africa and enforcing sweeping form changes that could trip up thousands of immigration applicants who fail to act quickly.
New Field Office Opens in Addis Ababa
USCIS opened a new international field office in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, which began operations on September 9, 2026, to handle USCIS immigration matters in Ethiopia.
Staff in Addis Ababa will verify the authenticity of foreign documents, investigate suspected fraud, and collect DNA to confirm family relationships.
Historically, these functions have been supported through coordination with the Department of State, but the new office will provide USCIS with a dedicated presence to perform these critical workloads directly.
This action is part of a broader effort to better align USCIS' overseas operations with agency priorities and strengthen the agency's overseas operational capacity.
The Addis Ababa location is USCIS's second field office in Africa, alongside its existing office in Nairobi, Kenya.
USCIS's updated international offices page now lists Ethiopia alongside Guatemala, Honduras, India, Kenya, Mexico, and Turkey.
The opening is notable given that USCIS dramatically downsized its overseas footprint in 2019–2020,
closing 16 international field offices and three district offices permanently.
The addition of the Addis Ababa office signals a strategic reversal in certain regions.
Services at the office in Addis Ababa will be available only by appointment.
USCIS will update its International Immigration Offices webpage with additional information about the office, available services, and appointment procedures.
Applicants in Ethiopia should note that the office handles specific functions — including
Form I-730, Refugee/Asylee Relative Petition
processing and biometrics collection — rather than a full range of domestic immigration services.
Forms I-765 and I-539: Hard Cutoff on September 15
Just days after the Ethiopia office launch, USCIS is enforcing a strict form transition that leaves no room for error.
USCIS will require a new edition of Forms I-539 and I-765 beginning September 15, 2026, with no grace period for previous versions.
The new forms reflect changes under the federal rule replacing Duration of Status (D/S) with a fixed period of admission for F and J nonimmigrants.
Unlike many USCIS form updates, there will be no grace period allowing applicants to continue using the previous editions after the change takes effect.
USCIS specifically states that there will be no grace period because the revised forms are necessary to implement the new fixed-period-of-admission rule.
The practical implications are straightforward but unforgiving.
The 09/15/26 editions of both forms will replace the 08/28/24 edition of Form I-539 and the 08/21/25 edition of Form I-765.
The agency will begin accepting those editions on September 15, 2026, and will reject the previous editions if they are postmarked or electronically submitted on or after that date.
Equally important:
the new editions cannot be filed early — USCIS will reject a 09/15/26 edition postmarked or e-filed before September 15, 2026, even though preview versions are already posted.
The firm cutoff makes the filing date especially important for international students and other nonimmigrants preparing status or employment authorization applications.
This change affects nonimmigrant students, exchange visitors, and foreign media representatives applying for extensions or work authorization.
For applicants filing around the transition date,
for paper applications, the postmark determines which edition is appropriate.
Applicants should double-check their form edition immediately before submission.
Form I-485: The Public Charge Overhaul on September 18
Three days after the I-539/I-765 transition, an even more consequential change arrives.
On September 18, 2026, USCIS will publish a revised edition of Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, which aligns with the recently announced Public Charge Ground of Inadmissibility Final Rule and will immediately replace the current 01/20/25 edition without any grace period for the transition.
The old 01/20/25 edition will be rejected if it is postmarked or electronically submitted on or after September 18, 2026 — in other words, there is a hard cutoff and applications filed with the wrong edition on or after September 18 will not be accepted, regardless of when they were prepared.
The form change is inseparable from the underlying policy shift.
On July 16, 2026, DHS announced a final rule that rescinds the 2022 Biden-era public charge inadmissibility regulations, formally published in the Federal Register on July 20, 2026, and going into effect on September 18, 2026.
Under the new framework, USCIS officers gain significantly broader discretion.
For means-tested public benefits received before September 18, 2026, USCIS will only consider the alien's receipt of public cash assistance for income maintenance and long-term institutionalization at the government's expense. For means-tested public benefits received on or after September 18, 2026, USCIS will consider any and all benefits.
For benefits received on or after September 18, 2026, USCIS may consider any public benefit subject to economic evaluation, including cash assistance, housing assistance, food stamps, college financial aid, or other similar benefits.
Importantly, receipt of a public benefit is not automatically disqualifying.
USCIS officers will make public charge determinations based on the totality of the circumstances, considering statutory factors and other relevant evidence.
What Applicants Should Do Now
The convergence of these deadlines creates an unusually high-stakes window for immigration applicants. Here is what practitioners and applicants should keep in mind:
Check edition dates before every filing.
Every USCIS form shows its edition date at the bottom of each page, and each form's webpage lists the edition currently accepted. An edition mismatch is a common reason USCIS rejects otherwise complete applications.
Understand that a rejection is not a delay — it is a return.
A rejected I-485 is not a delayed I-485 — it is returned unfiled. For applicants whose eligibility depends on a priority date being current, on maintaining status, or on a child's age under the Child Status Protection Act, a rejection for using the wrong form edition can cost far more than the weeks it takes to refile.
Prepare for the expanded public charge analysis.
Applicants who may be subject to the public charge ground should consider reviewing their circumstances before filing an adjustment-of-status or immigrant visa application, and should be prepared to document the availability of financial support from family members or other sources.
Do not reflexively drop benefits.
Applicants should not automatically discontinue benefits for which they or their family members are eligible based solely on the new rule — DHS expressly states that the rule does not regulate eligibility for public benefits or require individuals to disenroll from programs. Instead, individuals who are concerned about the potential immigration consequences of receiving benefits should consult with an immigration attorney before making changes.
Applicants in Ethiopia should monitor the USCIS Addis Ababa Field Office page for updated appointment and service information as the office ramps up.
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This article is provided for informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice. Individuals with questions about these changes should consult a qualified immigration attorney.