The United States Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) has introduced a rule that would hold immigrant sponsors accountable for failing to meet contractual obligations that they enter when sponsoring a foreign national for an immigrant visa. The new rule comes after the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued a decision (website) allowing DHS to resume implementing nationwide public charge inadmissibility following an earlier ruling by a federal judge temporarily blocking DHS from implementing public charge findings (see this article).
The proposed rule would require American citizens and lawful permanent residents who sponsor an immigrant through an I-864 Affidavit of Support or a I-864EZ to provide credit reports and credit scores, certified copies of income tax returns for the last three years, and bank account information to demonstrate that they can maintain the required income to support the immigrant if necessary.
In addition, the new rule would require any petitioning sponsor that has received certain public benefits (see this article) within the last 36 months of submitting an I-864 or has defaulted on previous obligations to support a sponsored immigrant must be backed by a joint sponsor who has not received public benefits during the same time period of time.
For more information on the proposed rule and its effect on immigrant visa applicants in Asia, contact us today at info@enterimmi.com and speak with a U.S. immigration attorney in Ho Chi Minh City, Manila and Taipei.
Copyright 2020. This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. This article may be changed with or without notice. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the Enterline Immigration only.