USCIS Issues Guidance on Making Public Charge Inadmissibility Determination

Key changes

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is issuing updated guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual explaining how the agency will determine whether an alien applying for adjustment of status to that of a lawful permanent resident is likely at any time to become a public charge.

On July 16, 2026, DHS announced a final rule that rescinds the 2022 Biden-era public charge inadmissibility regulations. The final rule was formally published in the Federal Register on July 20, 2026, and goes into effect on Sept. 18, 2026. The updated guidance aligns with congressional intent that aliens in the United States be self-sufficient and not dependent on taxpayer-funded government benefits.

This updated guidance explains which categories of aliens are subject to the public charge inadmissibility ground and which categories Congress has made exempt. The guidance describes key concepts, the factors that are considered in public charge inadmissibility determinations, and what evidence will be considered. It also explains the public charge bonds process.

Aliens Subject to the Public Charge Ground of Inadmissibility

All aliens applying for adjustment of status to that of a lawful permanent resident are subject to the public charge ground of inadmissibility unless they are applying in an immigration category that is exempt. Below is a complete list of categories who are subject to and the categories that are exempt from the public charge ground of inadmissibility:

Spouses, children, and parents of U.S. citizens

Unmarried sons and daughters of U.S. citizens and their children

Spouses, children, and unmarried sons and daughters of LPRs

Married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens and their spouses and children

Brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens

Fiancé(e)s of U.S. citizens

Amerasians based on preference category, born on or after Dec. 31, 1950, and before Oct. 22, 1982

Widows or widowers of U.S. citizens

Professionals with advanced degrees or aliens of exceptional ability

Skilled workers, professionals, and other workers

Certain employees or former employees of the U.S. government abroad

Panama Canal Zone employees

Foreign medical school graduates

Retired employees of international organizations

U.S. armed forces personnel

International broadcasters

Diplomats or high-ranking officials unable to return home (Section 13 of the Act of September 11, 1957)

Certain entrants before Jan. 1, 1982

Alien witnesses or informants

Amerasian immigrants at admission

Afghan and Iraqi interpreters or Afghan and Iraqi nationals employed by or on behalf of the U.S. government

Cuban and Haitian entrants at adjustment of status under section 202 of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986

Applicants seeking adjustment under the Cuban Adjustment Act

Nicaraguans and other Central Americans who are adjusting status to lawful permanent resident

Haitians who are adjusting status to lawful permanent resident under the Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act of 1998

Special immigrant juveniles

Applicants seeking Temporary Protected Status

Certain nonimmigrant ambassadors, ministers, diplomats, and other foreign government officials, and their families

Victims of human trafficking (T nonimmigrants)

Victims of qualifying criminal activity (U nonimmigrants)