USCIS has issued guidance on what public benefits trigger public charge grounds of inadmissibility. USCIS stated that the following benefits trigger public charge consideration: · cash assistance for income maintenance includes Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and state or local “general assistance†program · public assistance, including Medicaid, used to support aliens who reside in an institution for long-term care such as a nursing home or mental health institution may be considered as an adverse factor USCIS set forth several benefits not subject to public charge consideration: · Medicaid and other health insurance and health services other than support for long-term institutional care · Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) · Nutrition programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)- commonly referred to as Food Stamps, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Program, and other supplementary and emergency food assistance programs · Housing benefits · Child care services · Energy assistance, such as the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) · Emergency disaster relief · Foster care and adoption assistance · Educational assistance (such as attending public school), including benefits under the Head Start Act and aid for elementary, secondary or higher education · Job training programs · In-kind, community-based programs, services or assistance (such as soup kitchens, crisis counseling and intervention, and short-term shelter) · Non-cash benefits under TANF such as subsidized child care or transit subsidies · Cash payments that have been earned, such as Title II Social Security benefits, government pensions, and veterans’ benefits, and other forms of earned benefits · Unemployment compensation A link to the Fact Sheet follows. Related Links Public Charge Fact Sheet (rev. May 3, 2011).
