Who is exempt from the 5-year bar?

• Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR) - see Note 2 below.
• Parolees - if granted parole for at least one year under §212(d)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).
• Abused spouses and children with an I-130 notice of “prima facie” approval or a pending or approved self-petition under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).
• Admitted to the U.S. as conditional entrants prior to April 1, 1980, under 203(a)(7) of the INA.

• Amerasians who were born to a U.S. citizen armed services member in Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Kampuchea, or Thailand after December 31, 1950, but before October 22, 1982, who were admitted to the U.S. as immigrants pursuant to §584 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act.
• Individuals paroled as refugees or asylees under §212(d)(5) of the INA.
• Refugees admitted under §207 of the INA.
• Members of Hmong and Highland Laotian tribes that assisted the U.S. military during the Vietnam era from August 5, 1965 through May 7, 1975.
• Special immigrants from Iraq or Afghanistan admitted to the U.S. under one of the following:
  • Special immigrant status under section §101(a)(27) of the INA;
  • Special immigrant conditional permanent resident; or
  • Paroled under section 602(b)(1) of the Afghan Allies Protection Act or section 1059(a) of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2006.
• Under Section 2502 of the Afghanistan Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2022 and the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023, Afghans granted humanitarian parole between July 31, 2021, and September 30, 2023, and their spouses and children, and the parents and guardians of unaccompanied minors who are granted parole after September 30, 2022, are evaluated as qualified immigrants until March 31, 2023, or the end of their parole term, whichever is later.
• Ukrainians - and non-Ukrainians who last habitually resided in Ukraine - granted humanitarian parole between February 24, 2022, and September 30, 2024. Their spouses and children, and the parents and guardians of unaccompanied minors who are granted parole after September 30, 2024, under Section 401 of the Additional Ukrainian Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2022, and as extended by the Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations act of 2024, are evaluated as qualified immigrants.
• Victims of trafficking per the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000.
• Asylees whose status was granted under §208 of the INA.
• Cuban/Haitian entrants, in accordance with the requirements in 45 CFR §401.2³, including individuals approved under the Haitian Family Reunification Parole (HFRP) program.
• Persons granted withholding of deportation or removal.
• Citizens of Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of Palau, or the Republic of Marshall Islands living in the United States in accordance with the Compacts of Free Association.
• Qualifying American Indians born abroad as described above are typically coded as U.S. citizens, but if they provide verification of LPR status, they may be coded as Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR) under MAGI programs. They are not required to have or provide verification of LPR status.

Note: The 5-year bar does not apply to individuals that have obtained a “qualified immigrant status within the last 5 years, if they entered the U.S. prior to August 8, 1996 and have continuously lived in the U.S. since August 22, 1996, See WAC 182-503-0535.

Note: The category code on the I-551 Permanent Resident Card (green card) indicates how an LPR entered the U.S. If an individual entered the U.S. under a status that is exempt from the 5-year bar and has had LPR status for less than 5 years, they are still exempt from the 5-year bar.