Monday, December 3, 2018

Proposed ‘public charge’ rule change stirs confusion over green card eligibility

This is important background about why many public comments should be forthcoming about the Trump Administration's Public Charge Rule Change.

The draft regulations are currently open for public comments until Dec. 10th.

Hundreds of thousands of immigrant parents in California may disenroll their children from health insurance, food stamps and other federally subsidized programs because they fear that receiving these benefits will make it impossible for them to become permanent residents in the United States.

Their fears have been triggered by new regulations proposed by the Trump administration that expand the number of benefits that immigration officers can take into account in deciding whether to deny an immigrant permanent residence in the United States. Federal law allows immigration officials to deny green cards to immigrants if authorities decide they are likely to become a “public charge” — someone who relies excessively on government benefits to survive.