Immigrants’ use of non-cash government benefits would not threaten their eligibility for green cards under a proposed change to the so-called public charge rule unveiled Thursday by the Department of Homeland Security.
The proposal, the department’s interpretation of a historic regulation designed to keep out immigrants the government deems likely to rely on public assistance, thus becoming a “public charge,” marks a return to a long-standing interpretation that the Trump administration did away with.
In 2019, the Trump administration rolled out a rule expanding the types of government benefits that could disqualify immigrants from obtaining green cards to include Medicaid, public housing assistance and other non-cash programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps.
