US to revive rule that could deny green cards to immigrants using public benefits

The Trump administration says people seeking green cards should not be "public charges"

The US government is reviving a rule that could deny permanent residency to immigrants who use public benefits such as food stamps and Medicaid, the Department of Homeland Security said on Thursday.

The administration of President Donald Trump, determined to crack down on what it calls illegal immigration, says people seeking green cards should not be "public charges" who are primarily dependent on government subsistence.

The change — announced in an official post by the Department of Homeland Security — will take effect on Sept 18 this year.

The original rule, adopted in 2019 during Trump's first term in power, significantly expanded the definition of a public charge to include anyone who received a government benefit for more than 12 months in any three-year period.

This broad approach was abandoned in 2022 during the Biden administration, which narrowed the grounds for potentially denying a green card to immigrants.

In a post on X, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services said the revived rule underlined the intent "that aliens in the United States be self-reliant and not dependent on taxpayer-funded government benefits."

The original rule was heavily criticised by immigrant advocates who said it unfairly targeted poor people and would bar many people from obtaining permanent residency.