CDC Changes Vaccination Requirements for Permanent Resident Applicants
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) provides the U.S. Department of State (DOS) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) with medical screening guidelines for medical examinations of permanent resident (“green card”) applicants. The CDC this year made significant changes to the vaccination requirements for permanent resident applicants. All applicants must be examined by a physician – either a physician in the country where the foreign national is applying for an immigrant visa or by an approved physician in the U.S. if the applicant is seeking adjustment of status.
Under the CDC's changes, the following vaccines have been added (as age-appropriate) to the vaccination requirements with which all green card applicants must comply:
- rotavirus vaccine;
- hepatitis A vaccine;
- meningococcal vaccine;
- human papillomavirus vaccine; and
- zoster vaccine.
Additionally, hepatitis B vaccine is required through 18 years of age, influenza vaccine is required for children from ages 6 months to 59 months, and acellular pertussis-containing vaccines have been developed for persons ages 10 years to 64 years.
Further information and updates on the required vaccines are available at the CDC's Division of Global Migration and Quarantine website at www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dq/health.htm