The Trump administration will deny green cards to immigrants who use public assistance.

The Donald Trump administration is reintroducing a rule that allows it to deny green cards to immigrants who rely on government benefits, such as food stamps, Medicaid, housing subsidies, and other forms of assistance. The new rule is being discussed. Fox News и CBS with reference to the official website USCIS (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services).

The regulation, known as the public charge, appeared in the Federal Register on July 16. Official publication is scheduled for July 20, and the new rule will go into effect on September 18. Under this rule, green card applicants must prove they will not become a financial burden on the country.

What does the new rule change?

Current federal immigration law already provides that some visa applicants, entry into the United States, or green card applications may be denied if authorities believe the person could potentially become a burden on the government.

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The 2022 rule limited the list of benefits eligible to be included primarily to cash payments intended to cover basic expenses, as well as long-term care in federally funded institutions.

The new final version restores the broader authority USCIS had during Trump's first term. Now, officers will be able to consider each case individually, taking into account the applicant's age, health, marital status, assets, financial resources, education, skills, and receipt of benefits.

Such benefits may include food stamps, Medicaid, and housing assistance, USCIS officials said.

"The federal government is reaffirming the requirement for self-reliance, protecting public resources, and ending policies that have fostered dependency at the expense of hardworking American taxpayers," said USCIS Director Joseph B. Edlow. "Under President Trump, the service is reclaiming the fundamental principle that immigrants must be able to support themselves."

Who will this affect?

The rule applies to non-citizens in the United States applying for adjustment of status to permanent residence, as well as to those seeking entry into the country as immigrants or non-immigrants, unless they fall under categories waived by Congress. Traditionally, the public charge test does not apply to some refugees, asylees, and certain humanitarian categories—including special immigrant minors, certain victims of human trafficking and crime, and applicants under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).

In its November 2025 proposal, the Department of Homeland Security estimated that approximately 588 adjustment of status applicants would be subject to public charge screening annually. This figure does not include all those applying for visas outside the United States or attempting to enter the country across the border.

USCIS representatives clarified that benefits received by family members of the applicant will not automatically be considered their own, but may be taken into account when assessing financial need. For example, if they demonstrate the applicant's inability to support the household or actually support it.

For applications submitted before the rule's effective date, only benefits received after that date will be considered. In other words, payments received earlier will only be considered if they involve income support or long-term state-funded maintenance benefits.

At the same time, USCIS plans to publish an updated Form I-485—Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status. Older versions of the form submitted by mail or electronically after the effective date will not be accepted.

How the situation developed

The "public charge" test has been enshrined in U.S. immigration law for decades, but in recent years, the question of which benefits count has become a subject of heated debate.

Before Trump's first term, the Department of Homeland Security relied on a 1999 clarification that defined a "charge on the government" as someone "primarily dependent on the government for their livelihood." This focused on cash benefits and long-term government support, and generally excluded programs such as Medicaid, food stamps, and housing assistance.

The 2019 rule expanded the criteria, allowing officials to consider a broader set of benefits, including SNAP, most Medicaid programs, and certain housing programs, and to conduct a more detailed analysis of an applicant's income, health, credit history, education, and living conditions.

This decision sparked a wave of lawsuits. However, the Supreme Court allowed the rule to remain in effect pending the litigation, and it has been in effect since February 2020. After Joe Biden took office, the Department of Homeland Security stopped defending it in court, and a new version was ultimately adopted in 2022, effectively restoring the narrower approach of 1999.

Despite lengthy legal disputes, actual denials based on the "public charge" criterion remained extremely rare. According to the agency, the number of denials of status change applications based on this criterion ranged from 41 to 95 cases per year from the 2020 to 2024 fiscal years.

Even during the 2019 rule's implementation, there were only five cases of refusals or notices of intent to refuse following a full public charge review, with those decisions subsequently being reviewed or overturned.

The rule expands the grounds for refusal

The new version of the rule does not list or specify the specific programs and types of assistance that may be considered. Instead, it states that officials applying the rule will make "individual decisions based on the individual's circumstances and the totality of factors characterizing the alien."

Furthermore, the document states: “By using professional judgment and the powers granted, employees will be able to more accurately assess the likelihood that an alien may become a burden on the state at any time.”

The Trump administration first introduced this rule back in 2018, citing the need to allow only financially self-sufficient individuals into the country. Civil rights activists criticized the initiative at the time, calling it a "means test." Public health experts warned that it would lead to a decline in public health.

Manatt Health, an organization that advises federal and state governments, estimated that this policy could have discouraged up to 26 million people from seeking medical care, food assistance, housing, and other assistance to which they were legally entitled. About half of these were U.S. citizens, primarily children or adults living in mixed-status households.

Experts note, among other things, that the majority of recipients of state aid already have legal status.

According to a 2020 study by the Migration Policy Institute, the number of immigrants who would actually be deemed ineligible for permanent status due to benefit use remains small.

The institute estimated that no more than 167 people (less than 1% of the 22,1 million non-citizens living in the United States at the time) could have been denied one of the types of assistance.

According to the Census Bureau, there were 22,8 million non-citizens living in the United States in 2023.

Confusion and fear

Nonprofits say the policy has created confusion and fear, leading many immigrants and their U.S.-born relatives to avoid applying for benefits and services.

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Human rights organizations have strongly condemned the decision to reinstate the "public charge" rule.

"This provision is a direct attack on immigrant families and a threat to the health and economic security of the country," said Adriana Cadena, executive director of the Protecting Immigrant Families coalition. "The Trump administration, ignoring the harm it causes, is making immigration decisions based on bias and political considerations."

Sarah Krieger, a senior policy attorney at the National Immigration Law Center, said the rule would make immigrants afraid to go to the doctor, buy groceries, and even file taxes.

"With this rule, the authorities are sowing fear and chaos, ultimately seeking to reshape the country so that only a few—white and extremely wealthy—are welcome," Krieger concluded. "This rule not only causes serious harm, but also violates the law."

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