US Green Card Rules have changed from September 18, 2026, allowing immigration officers to consider a wider range of means-tested public benefits when assessing certain applications for permanent residency.
The updated policy can include benefits such as Medicaid, food assistance and school meal programmes in a broader “public charge” assessment.
The change comes after the US Department of Homeland Security rescinded the 2022 public charge regulation.
Under the new framework, officers have broader discretion to consider an applicant’s overall circumstances rather than applying a narrowly defined list of benefits.
US Green Card Rules Expand Public Benefit Checks
Under the revised rules, officers may consider means-tested public benefits received or applied for on or after September 18, 2026.
These can include Medicaid, SNAP food assistance and certain school lunch or summer food programmes, depending on the applicant’s circumstances.
However, receiving one of these benefits does not automatically mean that a Green Card application will be rejected.
The Federal Register rule states that benefit use is one factor in a broader assessment of whether an applicant is likely to become a public charge.
The assessment can also consider factors such as age, health, family status, assets, resources, financial position, education and skills, along with other circumstances relevant to the individual case.
What Indian Green Card Applicants Need to Know
For Indian nationals seeking US permanent residency, the revised framework means that applications covered by the new rule may face broader scrutiny of financial circumstances and qualifying public-benefit use.
The updated guidance applies to certain adjustment-of-status applications submitted or postmarked on or after September 18, 2026.
Benefits received before that date continue to be considered under the previous framework.
The rule does not itself change eligibility for Medicaid, SNAP or school meal programmes.
Instead, it changes how the receipt of certain benefits can be considered when immigration officers make a public-charge determination.
Medicaid and Food Assistance Can Be Considered
The new framework specifically allows officers to consider Medicaid and SNAP when relevant to a public-charge assessment.
The officer can look at factors such as how recently the benefit was received, how long it was received and whether it was used alongside other benefits.
School lunch and summer food programmes can also be considered in certain circumstances.
DHS has clarified that the rule does not change the eligibility requirements for these programmes, but participation may be relevant to an individual public-charge determination.
The rule generally focuses on benefits received by the applicant rather than benefits received by family members.
There are specific circumstances, however, in which benefits received by family members can become relevant to the applicant’s assessment.
US Green Card Rules Face Legal Challenge
The revised policy has also triggered legal challenges. New York and 21 other states, along with the District of Columbia and several cities, have sued the Trump administration over the expanded public-charge policy.
The challengers have argued that the policy could discourage immigrant families from accessing benefits for which they are eligible.
The administration, meanwhile, says the broader assessment is intended to support the principle that immigrants should be self-reliant and not dependent on taxpayer-funded government benefits.
For applicants, the key point is that benefit use is not described as an automatic ground for Green Card rejection.
Instead, immigration officers have discretion to consider qualifying benefits alongside the applicant’s complete circumstances when making a public-charge determination.
