Immigration Alert
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has finalized a rule rescinding the public charge regulation that has governed adjustment of status (Form I-485) applications since December 2022. In its place, DHS will roll out a new, broader public charge standard through updated policy guidance.
The result: Applicants filing for adjustment of status after the effective date should expect significantly greater scrutiny of their financial circumstances and a higher likelihood that USCIS could find an applicant inadmissible on public charge grounds.
What Is “Public Charge”?
Under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), the public charge ground of inadmissibility allows the government to deny certain immigration benefits if an applicant is likely to become primarily dependent on government assistance in the future.
USCIS applies a “totality of the circumstances” test, weighing factors including:
- Age
- Health
- Family status
- Assets, resources, and financial status
- Education and skills
A finding that an applicant is likely to become a public charge can result in the denial of an adjustment of status application.
How We Got Here
- 2019: The Trump Administration issued a sweeping public charge rule requiring extensive financial documentation and additional attestations for certain non-immigrant filings.
- 2020–2021: The rule faced repeated legal challenges, cycling through enforcement and injunctions before being vacated in March 2021.
- December 2022: The Biden Administration adopted a narrower rule limited to adjustment of status applicants.
- September 18, 2026: DHS rescinds the 2022 rule and replaces it with a broader standard set through policy guidance rather than formal rulemaking.
What to Expect Going Forward
While DHS has not yet released the full policy guidance, the agency has signalled the new standard will be more expansive than the current framework. Applicants filing after September 18, 2026, should anticipate:
- Closer review of financial circumstances
- More rigorous application of the totality of the circumstances test
- A revised Form I-485 with updated public charge questions
- Potentially higher evidentiary standards to demonstrate financial self-sufficiency
What This Means for Employers and Applicants
Employment-based adjustment applicants should be prepared to provide more extensive documentation and undergo a more thorough public charge review. Employers sponsoring foreign national employees should factor these changes into filing timelines and case strategy for adjustment applications submitted on or after the effective date.
We are actively monitoring DHS’s implementation of the new public charge guidance and the release of the revised Form I-485 and will share updates as they become available. Contact our immigration team with questions about how these changes may affect your adjustment of status application or employment-based immigration strategy.
If you are planning to file Form I-485 in the coming months, now is the time to talk with immigration counsel about how this transition may affect your case. Please book an appointment here.