Lawsuits Halt USCIS Public Charge Rule and Department of State Public Charge Rule will not be implemented in 2019 until new form and rules published

On October 11, 2019, Judges before the U.S. District Courts for the Southern District of New York (PDF, 68 KB), Northern District of California (PDF, 888 KB), Eastern District of Washington (PDF, 631 KB), Northern District of Illinois (PDF, 137 KB), and District of Maryland (PDF, 498 KB) have ordered that US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) cannot implement and enforce the final rule on the public charge ground of inadmissibility under section 212(a)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The court orders also postpone the effective date of the final rule until there is final resolution in the cases. Most of the injunctions are nationwide, and prevent USCIS from implementing the rule anywhere in the United States.

Also on October 11, 2019, Department of State (DOS) published an interim final rule that amends 22 CFR 40.41, Ineligibility Based on Public Charge Grounds, to add certain definitions, including definitions of public charge, public benefit, alien's household, and receipt of public benefit. On October 15, 2019, DOS announced that "Visa applicants are not requested to take any additional steps at this time and should attend their visa interviews as scheduled. The Department is seeking approval for use of a new form before it implements any changes to our processes. We will inform applicants of any changes to current visa application procedures." On October 24, DOS published in the Federal Register the DS-5540, Public Charge Questionnaire for public comment. The comment period will be open until December 23, 2019, and comments may be submitted via regulations.gov or via email at PRA_BurdenComments@state.gov. 

As a reminder, the interim final rule will not be implemented until the form and DOS revisions have been finalized. Given the public comment period for the form, the DOS rule will not be implemented in 2019.