All green card applications will be required to fill out several additional questions in the new update of Form I-485 (Application for Adjustment of Status), starting on December 23, 2022, authorities have announced.
Following the expiration of the public charge policies under the Trump Administration, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced a new public charge rule, which determines whether applicants for green cards are eligible to enter the US based on their likelihood to come to a public charge, VisaGuide.World reports.
Based on this version of the rule, DHS evaluates an applicant as a public charge risk if they are initially dependent on the government for their income, as demonstrated by proof of public income assistance for income maintenance.
More specifically, the rule makes evident changes to Form I-485, which will include some of the information previously gathered under the Trump administration with the discontinued Declaration of Self-Sufficiency.
The final rule will enter force on December 23, 2022, which indicates that the Application for Adjustment of Status will be necessary for all applications postmarked on or after the date when this change becomes effective. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS’) criteria for the updated form’s version is significantly different from the grace period it usually provides for form updates.
The preliminary version of the updated Form I-485 released by USCIS shows that if an applicant answers “yes” to be eligible for public charge ground of inadmissibility on their application, they must present information like their household size, annual household income, the value of household assets, the total value of household liabilities, degrees or certifications that they have achieved and lost of work-related skills, as well as licences.
According to USCIS’ preview version of the updated form, these are all documents that will have to be provided for the new public charge section.
In other words, Form I-485 is the next step to complete in the family-based green card process after submitting the Petition for Alien Relative or Form I-130. The main purpose of this application is to showcase that the foreign spouse meets all criteria to apply for US permanent residency.
Processing times for these forms can vary between 12 to 22 months and also depend on the category of adjustment on which the USCIS is processing the request.
There are seven major categories that determine who is eligible to file Form I-485; family-based, employment-based, special immigrant, asylum or refugee, human trafficking victim or crime victim, special programs and additional options. These are further divided into 27 subcategories.
The post US Immigration Services Announce Public Charge Changes to Green Card Applicants appeared first on VisaGuide.World.
