Supreme Court Allows "Public Charge" Immigration Rule to Take Effect
Today, the Supreme Court voted in favor of the Public Charge Rule proposed by the Trump administration in August of 2019. This new rule will mainly impact those seeking permanent resident status (“green card”) through family member petitions. It will not impact currently pending adjustment of status petitions or those that are postmarked before October 15, 2019.
The 837-page rule defines “public charge” as used in Section 214(a)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), defines the types of public benefits to be considered in public charge inadmissibility determinations, and the various factors to be considered by the government in making public charge determinations. The rule also sets out the procedure for people to pay “public charge bonds” in adjustment of status cases. The rule sets clear guidelines for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officers to determine, based on the “totality of the circumstances”, if someone is inadmissible.
The USCIS is revising existing USCIS information collections and new information collection instruments to meet the regulatory changes. Click here for a copy of the final rule.
Stay tuned for our webinar where we will explain what this all means once the USCIS releases the information related to the implementation of the new rule.