White House revives rule to deny green cards to migrants who use safety net programs

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The Trump administration is reviving a policy that would allow immigration officers to deny green cards to applicants who use public benefits like Medicaid, housing assistance or food stamps.

The policy governs how officials can apply the “public charge” test, which is used to determine whether applicants are likely to rely on government support.

A final rule issued Thursday reverses the 2022 Biden-era policy that only allowed authorities to consider a green-card applicant’s use of cash benefits.

The new version provides no limits.

Any use of a public benefit, as well as applicant metrics such as age, education, skills and health, can be considered for legal permanent residence as well as for immigrants seeking to enter the country.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will begin applying the new public charge framework in 60 days.

“The Trump administration is upholding the rule of law and protecting American taxpayers from subsidizing aliens who may become dependent on public benefits. USCIS is committed to safeguarding the safety, security, and financial well-being of Americans,” USCIS spokesperson Zach Kahler said in a statement.

The final rule stated the Biden administration’s policy put a “straightjacket” on Department of Homeland Security officers by hampering their ability to make public charge inadmissibility determinations.

Rescinding the Biden rule “aligns with long-standing policy that aliens in the United States should be self-reliant and government benefits should not incentivize immigration,” the final rule stated.

Critics say the lack of guidance opens the door to immigration officers arbitrarily rejecting applicants while discouraging immigrants from asking for assistance.

“The reach of this rule extends far beyond immigrants coming into the United States. It is designed to punish the citizens this administration dislikes: those in mixed-status families,” American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) Executive Director Benjamin Johnson said in a statement.

“U.S. citizens who are fully eligible for benefits will forgo health care, nutrition assistance, and other basic supports out of fear that using them could jeopardize a loved one’s immigration status. That is short-sighted, and the consequences for public health and economic stability will be felt in communities across the country,” Johnson added.

Roughly 1 in 5 Americans are enrolled in Medicaid, while about 12 percent receive food stamps. The programs are available only to those who are lawfully present in the United States, and with Medicaid, migrants are only able to receive care if their state has agreed to cover the cost.

“The Trump administration is once again weaponizing the federal government to make immigrants afraid to go to the doctor, buy food at the grocery store, and even file taxes,” Sarah Krieger, the senior policy counsel at the National Immigration Law Center, said in a statement. “With this new rule, they are sowing fear and chaos to ultimately reshape America into a country where only the few who are white and ultra-wealthy are welcome.”

The Trump administration first attempted to link immigrants’ legal status to their use of public benefits in 2019.

Any immigrant who received at least one designated public benefit for more than 12 months within any 36-month period was considered a “public charge” and was more likely to be denied a green card by immigration officials. The administration’s rule allowed officers to consider a wide range of public benefits — including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, most Medicaid, and certain housing programs.

That rule prompted a wave of lawsuits, but the Supreme Court allowed it to take effect while litigation continued.

The Biden administration then stopped defending the rule in litigation just months after taking office, and the case was dismissed.

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