What's Happening
On July 20, 2026, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a final rule that rescinds the 2022 public charge regulations. The “public charge” rule is the test the government uses to decide whether someone applying for a green card or admission to the United States is likely to depend on government support in the future. If the government decides someone is likely to become a public charge, it can deny the green card or entry.
The new rule, which takes effect on September 18, 2026, removes the clear definitions and protections adopted in 2022 and gives immigration officers much broader discretion. Importantly, the new rule also greatly expands the list of government benefits that can count against an applicant. Under the 2022 rule, only cash assistance and long-term institutional care mattered. Under the new rule, officers can consider any “means-tested” benefit, meaning any government program with an income limit, including Medicaid, SNAP (food stamps), CHIP, and housing assistance. A chart comparing the new and former public charge rules can be found here.
What You Need to Know
The filing date controls which rule applies. Green card (adjustment of status) applications postmarked or electronically filed on or before September 17, 2026 will be decided under the current, more predictable 2022 rule. Applications filed on or after September 18, 2026 fall under the new rule. If USCIS rejects an application and it has to be refiled after the deadline, the new rule applies, so filings must be complete and correct.
Benefits used before September 18, 2026 are generally protected. DHS has stated it will not hold past use of Medicaid, SNAP, CHIP, housing assistance, or similar benefits against applicants if those benefits were received before the effective date. For that earlier period, only cash assistance and government-paid long-term institutional care will be considered, just as under the 2022 rule.
Continuing benefits after September 18, 2026 is different. If someone keeps receiving a means-tested benefit on or after the effective date, that ongoing use can be considered, even if they enrolled at a time when the benefit did not count. USCIS may also ask applicants with a history of benefit use whether they are still enrolled.
Even applying for a benefit can now count. The new rule allows officers to consider not just benefits an applicant received, but benefits the applicant applied for or was approved to receive. The green card application form is being revised to require disclosure of all means-tested benefits received after the effective date.
Some benefits still do not count. Social Security retirement and disability benefits, unemployment insurance, veterans' benefits, government pensions, and other earned or non-income-tested programs are not considered.
Benefits used only by family members are generally not attributed to the applicant. The rule focuses on benefits applied for or received by the applicant. Benefits received solely by other household members, such as U.S. citizen children, are generally not treated as the applicant’s own benefit use, though the overall household finances remain part of the picture. Individuals should discuss their family’s specific situation with immigration counsel before making any changes.
Exempt categories remain exempt. Refugees, asylees, applicants under the Cuban Adjustment Act and Haitian adjustment law, T and U visa applicants (crime and trafficking victims), VAWA self-petitioners, special immigrant juveniles, and certain others are still not subject to the public charge test. Those exemptions come from statutes passed by Congress and are unchanged. One caution: benefits used after September 18, 2026 by someone who later applies for a green card through a category that is not exempt may be considered at that later stage.
Using benefits does not automatically mean denial. Officers must look at the whole picture, including age, health, family situation, income and assets, education, work history, and skills. But without the guardrails of the 2022 rule, outcomes will depend more heavily on individual officers’ judgment and discretion and will be harder to predict.
Important Considerations
File before the deadline if you can. If you are already eligible to apply for a green card from within the United States, filing so that your application is postmarked or electronically submitted on or before September 17, 2026 locks in the current 2022 standard, including the short list of benefits considered and the guaranteed positive weight of a qualifying affidavit of support. This is the single most effective step for anyone concerned about past or current benefit use. If you are currently eligible to file you should retain counsel as soon as possible to ensure sufficient time to prepare and file the application by September 17, 2026.
Review your household's benefit enrollment now. If you expect to file on or after September 18, 2026, take stock of any means-tested benefits you are receiving or have applied for. In some cases, ending enrollment before the effective date may reduce risk, but do not disenroll from health coverage or nutrition programs without first consulting with immigration counsel. For many people, especially those in exempt categories or those whose benefits are used only by U.S. citizen family members, disenrolling is unnecessary and could harm your family’s health and finances for no immigration benefit.
Build a strong self-sufficiency record. Because officers will now weigh all the facts with fewer fixed rules, documentation matters more than ever. Evidence of steady employment, income, savings and assets, private health insurance, education, job skills, English ability, and family or sponsor support can all help show you are unlikely to need government support.
Consider consular processing in some cases. This new rule governs decisions made by DHS inside the United States, mainly green card applications filed with USCIS. Applicants who complete their green card process at a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad are judged under separate State Department standards, which have historically been narrower and have not treated benefits like Medicaid or SNAP as automatic negatives. For some applicants with significant benefit histories, consular processing may present lower public charge risk. However, this is not the right path for everyone: it requires travel abroad, can raise other legal issues (such as bars based on time spent in the U.S. without status), offers very limited ability to challenge a denial, and the State Department could update its own rules to match the new DHS approach. This option should only be pursued after individualized legal advice.
Answer benefit questions truthfully. The revised forms will ask about benefit use, and misrepresenting your history creates far more serious problems than the benefits themselves. If you are unsure how to characterize a program you used, consult with immigration counsel.
Public charge bonds carry new risk. In the rare cases where the government allows admission with a public charge bond, any bond posted on or after September 18, 2026 will be considered breached, and the money forfeited, if the person receives any means-tested benefit at all. Anyone in a bond situation should seek advice before accepting any benefit.
What to Expect Next
Before September 18, 2026, USCIS is expected to publish updated policy guidance and a revised green card application form explaining what new personal and financial data officers will collect and how they will apply the new standard. Because the details will live in agency guidance rather than binding regulations, they can change more quickly and with less warning than in the past, so filing requirements may continue to shift.
Legal challenges to the rule are possible, as they have been with every recent version of the public charge policy. Court decisions could delay, block, or modify the rule. The State Department may also revise its own public charge standards for visa applicants abroad. D&S is monitoring all of these developments closely and will send updates as additional information becomes available.
In the meantime, if you are considering a green card application and currently receive or recently applied for any government benefit you should consult with an immigration attorney to assess your risk profile.
This alert is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Every situation is different, and you should consult a qualified immigration attorney about your specific circumstances before taking any action, including any decision about enrolling in or ending government benefits.