Immigration Physical Q & A

What is an immigration physical?

An immigration health physical is different than a routine exam or checkup with your family doctor. This type of medical exam is a mandatory part of the United States immigration process. If you’re changing your immigration status to become a permanent resident of the U.S., the office of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) requires that you receive a specific medical exam from an approved physician, like the ones at Warner Plaza Urgent Care.

The immigration physical is more like a screening to determine if it’s safe for you to become a resident of the U.S. During the exam, your provider looks for certain health conditions and ensures that you meet specific immigration criteria — like being up-to-date on vaccinations.

Typically, you won’t receive a general exam in which you discuss health concerns, conditions, and a treatment plan. Instead, your medical examiner makes sure you don’t have any infectious diseases that the USCIS doesn’t permit to enter the country.

What diseases are considered a public health concern?

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), communicable diseases that are of significant concern to American public health include:

• Tuberculosis
• Syphilis
• Gonorrhea
• Hansen’s Disease (leprosy)

The team at Warner Plaza Urgent Care provides testing for tuberculosis, syphilis, and gonorrhea on-site, for your convenience, as part of a standard immigration physical.

Additionally, when you apply for U.S. citizenship, you must be free of any quarantinable diseases, including:

• Cholera
• Diphtheria
• Plague
• Viral hemorrhagic fevers
• Smallpox
• Yellow fever
• Severe acute respiratory syndromes
• Influenza classified as a pandemic flu

You should also be free of any conditions that are considered to be a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) to the World Health Organization (WHO), such as polio and SARS.

What vaccines do I need as part of my immigration physical?

There are a number of diseases that are preventable through vaccination, and if you’re not currently up-to-date to meet the vaccination requirements, you can request them during your immigration physical. They include:

• Mumps, measles, and rubella
• Tetanus
• Polio
• Pertussis
• Rotavirus
• Hepatitis A and B
• Varicella
• Pneumonia
• Influenza  
• Diphtheria
• Meningococcal disease

The team of physicians at Warner Plaza Urgent Care reviews a copy of your vaccination records to determine which, if any, need to be updated. It’s important to bring your health records with you to the immigration physical so your doctor can review your medical history. If you have other conditions that don’t pose a threat to others, such as heart disease or diabetes, it doesn’t necessarily work against your citizenship.

To learn more, or to schedule an immigration physical with a USCIS designated civil surgeon, call the Woodland Hills, California office or schedule an appointment online.