Everything a green-card applicant in San Jose actually needs to know about the USCIS Form I-693 medical exam in 2026 — what it costs, how long it stays valid, the vaccines you need, and why it has to be a designated civil surgeon. No filler.
The immigration medical exam is one of the simpler steps in a green-card application — but it's the one people worry about most, usually because the information online is vague or out of date. This is the straight version, from a USCIS-designated civil surgeon in San Jose. Five questions cover almost everything applicants ask.
There's no single government price — each civil surgeon sets their own fee, and the total depends on how many vaccines and tests you personally need. It helps to think of the cost in three parts:
The single biggest way to keep the cost down is to bring your vaccination records and any recent TB or blood-test results to the visit. What you already have documented, we don't repeat.
The number that surprises people is how much the vaccines can swing the total. Someone who arrives with a complete, documented immunization history often pays close to just the exam fee. Someone who needs several catch-up vaccines will pay more — but those are shots you'd need for the green card regardless of where you had the exam done.
This rule changed recently, and a lot of older guidance online is now out of date — so please treat this as a starting point and confirm the current policy with USCIS (see the note below). The older rule made an I-693 valid for only two years from the civil surgeon's signature, which forced many applicants to repeat the exam when processing dragged on.
More recent USCIS guidance moved toward a longer validity window — reporting has indicated that a Form I-693 signed on or after November 1, 2023 may retain its value for the life of the pending application rather than expiring at two years. Because this is exactly the kind of rule that shifts, don't rely on a specific date without checking.
Please verify with USCIS. Confirm the current validity rule on the official USCIS Form I-693 page (or with a licensed immigration attorney) before you rely on it — we can't guarantee a timeframe for your specific case. The practical advice holds either way: get the exam done properly, keep your sealed envelope unopened, and submit it with (or shortly after) your application.
Your own primary-care doctor, however good, cannot complete Form I-693 for a green-card application filed from inside the United States. USCIS only accepts the form when it's done by a physician it has specifically designated as a civil surgeon — a separate authorization a doctor applies for and USCIS grants.
The difference isn't clinical skill; it's authorization and process. A civil surgeon is trained in the exact USCIS requirements, uses the current version of the form, follows the CDC's technical instructions for the exam and vaccines, and seals the completed form in an envelope that must reach USCIS unopened. A regular physician's exam — even a thorough one — will be rejected, because the form isn't signed by a designated civil surgeon.
Two quick clarifications: applicants applying from outside the U.S. see a panel physician instead (a different designation for overseas exams), and active-duty military applicants have their own process. For a standard adjustment-of-status case in the Bay Area, you need a civil surgeon — which is what Atlas Intensive Care is.
USCIS requires proof of immunity to a set of vaccine-preventable diseases defined by the CDC. Which ones apply to you depends on your age and what you can already document — the requirement is "age-appropriate," not every vaccine on the list for every person. The commonly required vaccines are:
Two things worth knowing: the COVID-19 vaccine is no longer required for the immigration medical exam, and you don't have to start from scratch — a documented immunization record or a blood test showing immunity (titers) counts as proof. If a vaccine is missing, the civil surgeon can often give it at the same visit so nothing holds up your form.
The most useful thing you can do before the exam is dig up your vaccination records — from a prior doctor, a childhood record, or your home country. Every dose you can prove is one you don't pay for or sit through again. If records are genuinely unavailable, we can test for immunity or give the missing vaccines on the spot. Most vaccines are covered as preventive care through insurance, frequently at no cost at a pharmacy; without insurance, individual vaccines typically run about $60–$150 each.
Sometimes the exam is a deadline, not a to-do — most often when USCIS issues a Request for Evidence (RFE) asking for the I-693 by a fixed date. Atlas offers same-day appointments, including same-day completion for RFE deadlines, so a looming date doesn't derail your case.
To make a single visit enough, bring: a government photo ID (passport preferred), your vaccination records, any recent TB or blood-test results, and your RFE notice if you have one. With those in hand, most applicants walk out the same day with a sealed, signed Form I-693 ready to submit.
Dr. Arun Sharma is a USCIS-designated civil surgeon serving San Jose and the greater Bay Area. The visit is straightforward and unhurried: we review your history and records, complete the required exam and screening, administer only the vaccines you actually need, and hand you a properly sealed Form I-693. Same-day and same-week appointments are available, including for RFE deadlines. See the full immigration medical exam page for details, or book directly below.
For anything legal, consult a licensed immigration attorney. This information is updated regularly but may not reflect the very latest USCIS changes, so always refer to the official USCIS website as well.
Same-day and same-week appointments with a USCIS-designated civil surgeon in San Jose — including same-day completion for RFE deadlines.