USCIS Revives Public‑Charge Crackdown: Officers Empowered To Deny Green Cards And Visas Over Welfare Risk

An internal USCIS memo directs adjudicators to apply stricter public‑charge inadmissibility standards across visa, admission, and green‑card cases. Officers are told to weigh health, age, skills, finances, employment history, and prior benefit use in a totality‑of‑circumstances and are “fully empowered” to exclude applicants likely to rely on taxpayer‑funded programs. The guidance reverses Biden‑era limits on which benefits could be considered and aligns with a broader Trump‑era enforcement pivot at USCIS. It signals higher discretionary denials and a nationwide tightening of legal immigration benefits.