United States | State Department issues FAQ on public charge

Following the Department of Homeland Security’s proposed rule to rescind the 2022 public charge ground of inadmissibility regulations, the State Department published a brief FAQ titled “Preventing Public Benefits Reliance.”

Key takeaways:

The FAQ includes four questions addressing public charge and nonimmigrants:

Public charge defined. The FAQ defines public charge as “a person that becomes primarily dependent on the government for subsistence, as demonstrated by accepting public cash assistance for income maintenance or long-term institutionalization at government expense” and provides examples including receiving services and resources from certain federal, state and local agencies and aid programs.

Potential consequences. The FAQ provides that nonimmigrant visa holders who “abuse” public benefits “as a foreign visitor” could have their visas revoked and that such “abuse” could impact “future visa ineligibility, and in the case of fraud, criminal prosecution.”

Consulate visa applicant considerations. Consular officers adjudicate and issue visas on a case-by-case basis. The FAQ emphasizes that consular officers consider “all aspects of a visa application,” including but not limited to “age, health, family status, financial status, education/skills and current or past use of U.S. public benefits” to determine if an applicant is ineligible for a visa due to public charge concerns.

Travel for medical treatment. The FAQ further provides that foreign nationals intending to travel to the U.S. for medical treatment may still be eligible for a nonimmigrant visa if they can “demonstrate they are not likely to become reliant on the U.S. government for public benefits or medical care” and will return to their home country.

Additional information: As of Feb. 27, 2026, the State Department has not updated guidance in the Foreign Affairs Manual or provided any clarification on the adjudication pause for immigrant visa applicants due to public charge concerns.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

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