The I-944 instructions state that foreign education should include an evaluation of equivalency to education or degrees acquired at accredited schools in the United States. Consular officials may not deny a case based on the public charge rule without first allowing applicants to fill out the DS-5540 and provide supporting documentation. The publicly funded benefits that the Department of Homeland Security will consider include: According to the DHS, the following factors could indicate that someone is highly likely to become a public charge: According to the new public charge rule, the following groups of people are not subject to the public charge ground of inadmissibility: The final rule requires applicants for adjustment of status who are subject to the public charge ground of inadmissibility to report certain information related to public benefits. It asks specifically whether the applicant has a high school diploma or equivalent degree, as well as any higher degrees. Meanwhile, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, whose officers adjudicate green cards, cannot apply the new standard in reviewing applications. The agency will put into consideration the civil liabilities of the applicant. The policy, known as the public charge rule, was announced in September 2018 and effectively created a wealth test for immigrants seeking permanent residency by … The rules now require immigrants to attach a new form, when applying for a green card through adjustment of status and. The receipt of Medicaid for the treatment of an emergency medical condition. When someone is not a full-time student and is authorized to work but cannot show current employment, recent employment history, or a reasonable prospect of future employment. In conclusion, the new rules direct immigration officers to consider several factors related to an immigrant’s economic situation, education, and health. It will be considered a heavily weighted negative factor if the applicant is authorized to work, not a full-time student, and is unable to demonstrate current employment, recent employment history, or a reasonable prospect of future employment. Private health insurance does not include state-funded coverage, although it includes subsidized Affordable Care Act (ACA) coverage. 194 0 obj
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Form I-944 includes questions regarding the applicant’s education and occupational skills. Refugee applicants and refugees who are applying for adjustment of status, Asylum applicants and asylees who are applying for adjustment of status, Applicants for withholding of removal or relief under the Convention Against Torture, Applicants for initial or re-registration of Temporary Protected Status (TPS), Applicants for initial or renewal of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status, Cubans who are applying for adjustment of status under the Cuban Adjustment Act, Amerasians who are applying for adjustment of status, Afghan and Iraqi interpreters and translators who are applying for special immigrant visas (SIV), Applicants for Special Immigrant Juveniles Status (SIJS), Victims of certain crimes who are applying for a U nonimmigrant visa or U visa holders applying for adjustment of status, Victims of trafficking who are applying for a T nonimmigrant visa; T visa recipients who are applying for adjustment of status no longer have to seek a waiver of public charge inadmissibility, Victims of domestic violence who are applying for relief under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), including approved self-petitioners who are applying for adjustment of status, Applicants for registry based on their having resided in the United States since before January 1, 1972, Applicants for benefits under the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (NACARA), Applicants for benefits under the Haitian Relief and Immigrant Fairness Act (HRIFA). Instead of assessing whether an applicant is likely to become primarily dependent on the government for income support, the new rules define a public charge as a person who is likely to receive any number of public benefits for more than 12 months over any 36 months. -�E��H��`m�B��d�[�&�Q�E�~ttJƐ�3���W�v�ۇq1��8�������-���yŪ6��/w���tsQ�͇�u�}8MEۚ�Gzx]����?�8�8��y��=g_�U�6�}Oצ�a��m��x�w�hk�\UiI�#��o����iI�NN�]eNK�\���5ؒ-ؑX�V�������܀_ɯ�-y������������cG���������������nn�>>����LA�0S�)�d Even though the rules require only the submission of the previous year/s tax return as evidence of assets, resources and financial status, they require three years of tax returns as evidence of the applicant’s status. Applicants who incurred a tax liability and failed to file a return should file one late, which may require payment of past taxes and any penalties. What factors weigh heavily in favor of a determination that someone is likely to become a public charge? by Asel Mukambetova, Esq. children, and unmarried sons and daughters of U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents, Parents, siblings, and married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens, Form I-944, Declaration of Self Sufficiency, Marriage green card (foreign spouse is abroad), Application for Certificate of Citizenship (N-600), Naturalization/Citizenship Document Replacement. Such assets must be significant and convertible to cash within one year. As detailed below, which family members the applicant must count as part of the household depends on whether the applicant is unmarried and under 21 or is over 21. Cook County and the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights filed a lawsuit in September 2019 challenging the legality of the public charge rule. In a 14-page ruling, Judge Gary Feinerman of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois cited “numerous unexplained flaws” that made the rule “arbitrary and capricious,” including an interpretation of self-sufficiency that had no basis in the statute it purportedly interpreted, and the failure to consider the “predictable collateral consequences” of its implementation. Income earned while the applicant was working in the United States without employment authorization will be counted. School-based services or benefits provided to individuals who are at or below the oldest age eligible for secondary education as determined under state or local law. endstream
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The applicant should also be able to include wage statements and an employer’s letter. The new regulations will make it more difficult for an applicant for adjustment of status or for an immigrant visa to show that he or she is not likely to become a public charge. This is more likely to affect applicants between the ages of 18 and 61. Consular Processing applications with interviews after. Who is most affected by the new public charge rule? DHS published the rule on Aug. 14, 2019, but, shortly before the final rule was scheduled to go into effect on Oct. 15, 2019, several federal courts enjoined the rule (that is, legally prohibited DHS from implementing it at that time). Public charge provisions have been part of U.S. immigration law since at least 1882. The rule also barred insane persons, persons suffering from contagious diseases, persons who have been convicted of a felony from becoming American citizens. Though the idea of public charges is a longstanding principle of U.S. immigration law, it historically was applied to those deemed likely to primarily depend on the federal government for survival, such as through public cash assistance or institutionalized long-term care. For non-immigrants such as students and tourists, the new rule will require them to prove they have not accessed certain benefit programs at the time they apply for an extension or a change of their nonimmigrant status. For applicants for admission under age 18, USCIS will give weight to the availability of outside support from a parent and any other evidence addressing the resources and assets available to the child in the totality of the circumstances. The Supreme court has twice ruled in favor of the administration. The Immigration Act of 1882 made it impossible for immigrants who were unable to take care of themselves without a public charge to become American citizens. The policy created a wealth test that would disqualify immigrants for green cards if they were deemed likely to use public benefits.