Yes—clinics are allowed to refuse a vaccination-only rate or charge their full package price, because USCIS does not regulate civil-surgeon fees.
“I entered on a K1 visa, got married this month, and am filing for AOS. My overseas medical exam is still valid, so I only need a civil surgeon to complete the vaccination record portion of Form I-693. However, every civil surgeon I call treats it as a full exam and quotes $300-$500+. Is it normal for them not to offer a vaccination-only rate, and are there specific types of providers that might do this without charging full price?”
Summary
Those $300-$500 quotes do not turn a full repeat exam into a USCIS requirement for your case. If you will file I-485 within one year of the overseas exam and your is incomplete, keep comparing individually designated civil surgeons for the partial form; there is no guaranteed low-cost provider category.
Your route depends on whether the overseas vaccination record was complete and whether you qualify for the narrow military-provider exception—not on whether an office calls itself a clinic, pharmacy, or health department.
If your was properly completed and included with the overseas medical report, the rule requiring a partial I-693 is not triggered; you do not need a civil surgeon merely to transcribe it (Form I-693 Instructions, FAQ 3).
If the DS-3025 was incomplete, use any USCIS-designated willing to provide the limited service. USCIS requires only Parts 1-5, Part 7, and Part 10 for this K-1 vaccination route, rather than the entire form (Form I-693 Instructions, FAQ 3).
If you are a U.S. armed-forces member or veteran, or an eligible dependent who may receive care at an , a qualifying military physician may complete Form I-693 under a . Participation is voluntary, so the facility need not offer it (USCIS Policy Manual, Vol. 8, Part C, Ch. 3).
The health-department blanket authority is expressly limited to refugees. It does not cover a K-1 applicant unless the particular physician also holds ordinary USCIS civil-surgeon designation (USCIS Policy Manual, Vol. 8, Part C, Ch. 3).
A clinic may decline the limited service or charge a package price because USCIS does not regulate civil-surgeon fees or require a separate vaccination-only price.
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Next steps
These steps determine whether you need no new form, a partial I-693, or a full repeat exam—and help you avoid paying for work USCIS does not require.
Before paying a clinic
Confirm that the K-1 partial-form rule covers you
Use the overseas exam date—not your wedding date. If you file Form I-485 within one year of that exam and the panel physician found no (or you received and complied with a waiver), no repeat full exam is required. If the DS-3025 was properly completed and included, the partial-form trigger is not met; if it was incomplete, continue.
Requirements
Before calling again
Collect the current form and every dated vaccine record
Download the 01/20/25 edition at https://www.uscis.gov/i-693. CDC permits the civil surgeon to accept valid written records with vaccine dates, but not unsupported verbal history. If another vaccination provider gives a missing dose, bring the dated written record; that provider cannot certify I-693 unless the physician is also USCIS-designated.
Requirements
Compare before booking
Call listed civil surgeons with the exact partial request
Use https://www.uscis.gov/tools/find-a-civil-surgeon. Say: ‘I entered on K-1, will file I-485 within one year of my overseas medical, and need only Parts 1-5, 7, and 10 under Form I-693 Instructions FAQ 3. Do you offer this partial vaccination assessment, what is the all-inclusive fee, and will you accept my dated outside vaccine records?’ A clinic may say no or retain its package price; USCIS allows you to compare other listed physicians.
Requirements
At the appointment and filing
Get the partial form sealed and file it with I-485
The designated civil surgeon reviews the records, completes the vaccination assessment, signs the 01/20/25 form, and seals it. Obtain your copy of Part 10, do not open the USCIS envelope, and place that sealed partial I-693 in the same package as Form I-485.
Requirements
Legal sources
This answer rests on the current USCIS Form I-693 instructions and page, the USCIS Policy Manual, and CDC's Technical Instructions for Civil Surgeons.
Form I-693 Instructions
This establishes the one-year K-visa exception and its Class A/waiver conditions.
FAQ 3, page 8
You are not required to complete another immigration medical examination as long as you file your Form I-485 within one year of an immigration medical examination completed outside the United States; and (a) The panel physician did not find a Class A medical condition during your imigration medical examination; (b) The panel physician did find a Class A medical condition, you received a waiver of inadmissibility, and you have complied with the terms and conditions of the waiver.
Form I-693 Instructions
This establishes when a K-visa applicant needs only the vaccination portion and identifies the required parts.
FAQ 3, page 8
Even if a new immigration medical examination is not required, you must still show proof that you complied with the vaccination requirements. If the vaccination record (DS 3025) was not properly completed and included as part of the original medical examination report completed abroad, you will need to have the Part 10. Vaccination Record completed by a designated civil surgeon. In this case, you must submit Parts 1. - 5., 7., and 10. of Form I-693.
USCIS Form I-693 page
This establishes concurrent filing and the edition accepted for signatures now.
When to File; Edition Date
If you are filing Form I-485, and if you are required to submit a Form I-693 or partial Form I-693 (such as the Vaccination Record), you must submit it with your Form I-485. Otherwise, we may reject your Form I-485. If the civil surgeon signs your form July 3, 2025 or later, USCIS will accept only the 01/20/25 edition.
USCIS Finding a Medical Doctor
USCIS does not require a separate partial-exam rate; each civil surgeon controls pricing.
We do not regulate the fees that civil surgeons charge to perform an immigration medical examination. You may want to call several local civil surgeons to compare fees and to inquire if the civil surgeon accepts insurance for the immigration medical examination.
USCIS Policy Manual Vol. 8 Pt. C Ch. 3
This rules out the general health-department shortcut for a K-1 applicant.
A.1 and A.3
Health departments may only use this blanket civil surgeon designation to complete the vaccination assessments for refugees seeking adjustment of status. Health departments operating under this blanket designation are authorized only to perform the vaccination component of the immigration medical examination for refugees seeking adjustment of status.
USCIS Policy Manual Vol. 8 Pt. C Ch. 3
This identifies the limited military-connected alternative and explains that facilities need not participate.
B.2-B.3
Participation in this blanket civil surgeon designation is entirely voluntary and at the discretion of each medical facility. Second, the immigration medical examination is being conducted for: A U.S. armed forces member or veteran; A dependent of a U.S. armed forces member or veteran who is eligible to receive medical care at an MTF; or Certain Afghan nationals seeking a special immigrant visa, including both principal applicants and eligible family members, in coordination with Operation Allies Refuge.
CDC Technical Instructions for Civil Surgeons—Vaccination
This establishes that the signer must evaluate valid outside records, seal the I-693, and give the applicant a Part 10 copy.
Review of Vaccination Records
The civil surgeon must review all vaccination records presented by the applicant and, if documentation appears valid, record the vaccination history and vaccines given during the medical exam on Form I-693 (Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record), according to the instructions provided by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). After administering any needed vaccines, the civil surgeon must complete Form I-693 and give it to the applicant in a sealed envelope, which the applicant will present to USCIS. A copy of the completed vaccination record in Part 10 must also be provided to the applicant for his or her personal records.
USCIS Policy Manual Vol. 8 Pt. B Ch. 9
This confirms that COVID-19 vaccination proof is no longer part of the immigration requirement for a pending AOS case.
B.1, footnote 4
On March 11, 2025, CDC updated their Technical Instructions for Civil Surgeons to remove the COVID-19 vaccination from the list of required vaccinations for immigration purposes. Therefore, applicants who are subject to the immigrant vaccination requirements are not required to submit documentation of having completed the COVID-19 vaccination series for any application pending on or after January 20, 2025.
These are the official USCIS and CDC rules as published on the cited dates; rules can change.
This is general information about official processes, not legal advice, and SettleKit is not a law firm.
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