USCIS Public Charge Rule to go Into Effect February 24, 2020

On January 27, 2020, in a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court temporarily upheld the Trump Administration’s “Inadmissibility on Public Charge” rule. The high court’s conservative majority will allow the rule to go into effect pending the appellate process in the lower courts. Under the rule, USCIS will consider several factors such as age, health, income, education, and skill-sets in order to determine whether an alien applicant is likely to become a public charge.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will implement the Public Charge rule on Feb. 24, 2020, except for in the State of Illinois (where the rule remains enjoined in Federal Court). USCIS will post updated forms, instructions, and Policy Manual guidance on the USCIS website during the week of Feb. 3, 2020. After Feb. 24, 2020, everywhere except in the State of Illinois, USCIS will reject prior editions of forms if the form is postmarked on or after Feb. 24, 2020.