New regulation seeks to toughen the requirements of individuals who support or sponsor immigrants to obtain Permanent Residence or Citizenship by naturalization.
The Department of Homeland Security announced this Thursday, October 1st, that it will strengthen through new provisions the requirements that are demanded to the people who support, sponsor or endorse immigrants to achieve their Permanent Residence or Citizenship by naturalization.
According to Joseph Edlow, Deputy Director of Policies at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), “reforming the immigrant sponsorship process will more effectively protect U.S. taxpayers and ensure that foreigners applying for permanent benefits are not dependent on public benefits and will strengthen mechanisms to hold accountable those who fail to financially sponsor the foreigners they sponsor.” In addition, the Deputy Director has stated that the Federal Government will ensure that it is reimbursed if sponsored or endorsed foreigners receive public benefits.
The proposed rule would require U.S. citizens, and lawful permanent residents who choose to sponsor an immigrant using Forms I-864 and I-864-EZ (Affidavits of Wealth) to provide the following information:
- Credit Report and Credit Scores
- Certified copies of Tax Returns for the last 3 years.
- Banking information to effectively demonstrate that they can maintain the required income.
– Also, under the proposed rule, any sponsor who has received public benefits such as: Medicaid, housing assistance, Food Stamps, in the last 36 months, or who has previously failed to fulfill his or her commitment by taking responsibility for an foreigner, must seek support from another sponsor who has not received Federal support.
It is important to note that the new provisions announced by the immigration authorities will be published this Friday, October 2nd, in the Federal Register, to receive the relevant public comments during the next 30 days.
