Here’s when the public charge rules take effect, impacting low-income immigrants
Legal immigrants in the United States who receive public benefits will face new hurdles after Feb. 24, when the Department of Homeland Security’s final rule on public charge ground of inadmissibility goes into effect.
Three days after the U.S Supreme Court lifted a nationwide injunction that prevented the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services from enforcing one of the harshest immigration policies targeting low-income immigrants — a 5-4 vote that USCIS called a ‘judicial victory — the DHS agency announced Thursday that it will begin implementing the rule on Feb. 24, 2020.
The new policy, part of the Trump administration’s wide effort to curb legal immigration, will affect immigrants living in the U.S. who want to adjust their status to legal permanent resident for a green card, as well as foreign citizens overseas seeking admission to the United States on immigrant or non-immigrant visas.
USCIS said in a press release that it will publish “updated forms, submission instructions, and Policy Manual guidance on the USCIS website during the week of Feb. 3, 2020, to give applicants, petitioners, and others ample time to review updated procedures and adjust filing methods.”
Which immigration forms are changing?
The immigration agency warned on Thursday that after the implementation date, it will reject any request made with earlier editions of the forms.
But USCIS also clarified that “it will not consider an individual’s application for, certification or approval to receive, or receipt of certain non-cash public benefits before Feb. 24, 2020 (instead of Oct. 15, 2019), when deciding whether the alien is likely at any time to become a public charge under the Final Rule,” the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) explained on their website on Friday.
Read more: Here’s what it takes for an immigrant to get a green card — and not lose it
Some of the forms that will be updated, according to AILA, are:
▪ I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker
▪ I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status
▪I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status
▪ I-864, Affidavit of Support Under Section 213A of the INA
▪ I-864EZ, Affidavit of Support Under Section 213A of the Act
Law experts say these forms will include additional questions related to receiving public benefits, whereby the immigrant or foreign citizen who applies for permanent residence must demonstrate that he or she is not likely to become dependent on the government for their livelihood at any time in the future.
Who is subject to the public charge inadmissibility ground?
According to a legal resource guide published by the immigration agency to answer frequent questions about the application of the public charge ground of inadmissibility, the final rule “changes the definitions for public charge and public benefits, and changes the standard that DHS uses when determining whether an alien is likely to become a ‘public charge’ at any time in the future and is therefore inadmissible and ineligible for admission or adjustment of status.”
Therefore, immigrants who for more than 12 months, in the aggregate, within any 36-month period, have received social benefits such as food stamps, housing assistance, cash benefits and federally funded Medicaid services, could be declared by USCIS adjudicators as not self-sufficient and, thus, ineligible for legal permanent resident status.
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“Self-sufficiency is a core American value and has been part of immigration law for centuries. President Trump has called for long-standing immigration law to be enforced, and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is delivering on this promise to the American people,” said Ken Cuccinelli, the senior official performing the duties of the Deputy Secretary for DHS, in a statement.
“By requiring those seeking to come or stay in the United States to rely on their own resources, families and communities, we will encourage self-sufficiency, promote immigrant success and protect American taxpayers,” Cuccinelli added.
Read here the Final Rule on Inadmissibility on Public Charge Grounds, as published in the Federal Register.
Daniel Shoer Roth is a journalist covering immigration law who does not offer legal advice or individual assistance to applicants. Follow him on Twitter @DanielShoerRoth and Instagram. The contents of this story do not constitute legal advice.
Read more about the public charge rule in Spanish at AccesoMiami.com
Read more: If it seems like your citizenship or green card is taking too long, here’s how to check
This story was originally published January 31, 2020 at 2:36 PM with the headline "Here’s when the public charge rules take effect, impacting low-income immigrants."
