Three federal courts across the United States have temporarily suspended the enforcement of the Department of Homeland Security’s new “public charge” rule, which was set to take effect on October 15, 2019.  This new rule redefines how the agency can determine whether a foreign national is at risk of needing public assistance, which would make the foreign national ineligible for admission, extension of status, or permanent residence.  

Under the new rule, USCIS officers should consider the foreign national applicant’s age, health, family status, assets, resources, financial status, skills, and education to determine likelihood of requiring public assistance.  For more information on the new rule, please check out our previous blog post. 

Although the federal court decisions do not stop the State Department’s implementation of the new rule by US Consulates abroad, the State Department has announced that visa applicants do not need to take any additional steps at this time and should attend their visa interviews as scheduled. The State Department also stated that it is seeking approval for use of a new form before it implements any changes to visa processing.

During the temporary suspension of the new rule, the updated forms USCIS issued on October 9 to reflect the new rule will not take effect.