{ "id": "R43220", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "number": "R43220", "active": true, "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "versions": [ { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 460778, "date": "2017-02-06", "retrieved": "2017-05-09T15:07:23.649730", "title": "Public Charge Grounds of Inadmissibility and Deportability: Legal Overview", "summary": "The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) has long provided for aliens\u2019 exclusion and deportation from the United States on \u201cpublic charge\u201d grounds. Under current law, aliens outside the United States who seek to obtain visas at U.S. consulates overseas, or admission at U.S. ports of entry, are generally denied entry if they are deemed \u201clikely at any time to become a public charge.\u201d Aliens within the United States who seek to adjust their status to that of lawful permanent resident (LPR), or who entered the United States without inspection, are also generally subject to this ground of inadmissibility. Similarly, LPRs and other aliens who have been admitted to the United States are removable if they become a public charge within five years after the date of their entry due to causes that preexisted their entry. These public charge grounds are of recurring interest to Members of Congress because of questions about whether aliens who receive various forms of public assistance are inadmissible or deportable on public charge grounds. \nThe INA does not expressly define what it means for an alien to be a public charge, and, prior to 1996, there was no statutory guidance on what was to be considered in determining whether an alien is inadmissible or deportable on public charge grounds. Then, in 1996, the INA was amended to require that certain factors be taken into account when determining whether aliens are inadmissible on public charge grounds. These factors include the alien\u2019s age, health, family status, financial resources, education, and skills. There is no similar statutory guidance on what factors are to be considered in determining whether an alien is deportable on public charge grounds. \nGiven this general lack of statutory guidance, the executive and judicial branches initially construed the meaning of public charge in adjudicating cases involving individual aliens. In so doing, administrative authorities interpreted public charge differently for purposes of the grounds of inadmissibility than for the grounds of deportability. Specifically, public charge was construed broadly in the context of admissibility, with determinations based on a \u201ctotality of the circumstances\u201d test that considered factors like those codified in the INA in 1996. In contrast, in the context of deportability, \u201cpublic charge\u201d was construed more narrowly. Aliens could only be found to be deportable on public charge grounds if (1) they received government assistance that they were legally obligated to repay; (2) the government entity providing the assistance demanded repayment; and (3) the alien or the alien\u2019s sponsor was unable to pay. \nFollowing the enactment of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996, executive agencies issued guidance regarding the public charge grounds. While PRWORA generally restricts noncitizens\u2019 eligibility for \u201cpublic benefits,\u201d it permits them to receive specified benefits. Thus, its enactment raised questions about whether aliens who receive benefits for which they are eligible under PRWORA could potentially be removable on public charge grounds. Immigration officials addressed these questions in a 1999 policy letter that defined public charge and identified which benefits are considered in public charge determinations. This policy letter underlies current regulations and other guidance on the public charge grounds of inadmissibility and deportability. \nCollectively, the various sources addressing the meaning of public charge have historically suggested that an alien\u2019s receipt of public benefits, per se, is unlikely to result in the alien being deemed to be removable on public charge grounds. Neither the INA nor implementing regulations address the role that receipt of public benefits plays in public charge determinations. Other agency guidance and court decisions have generally indicated that, while receipt of certain public benefits could be considered in public charge determinations, other factors are also considered (e.g., age, obligation to repay).", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/R43220", "sha1": "a308ae05807ca31d597c21066078be84c09524f4", "filename": "files/20170206_R43220_a308ae05807ca31d597c21066078be84c09524f4.html", "images": null }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R43220", "sha1": "6ece03686544d907d3d96c4291bb39a17268cdf8", "filename": "files/20170206_R43220_6ece03686544d907d3d96c4291bb39a17268cdf8.pdf", "images": null } ], "topics": [] }, { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 448462, "date": "2016-01-05", "retrieved": "2016-04-06T17:36:16.556495", "title": "Public Charge Grounds of Inadmissibility and Deportability: Legal Overview", "summary": "The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) has long provided for aliens\u2019 exclusion and deportation from the United States on \u201cpublic charge\u201d grounds. Under current law, aliens outside the United States who seek to obtain visas at U.S. consulates overseas, or admission at U.S. ports of entry, are generally denied entry if they are deemed \u201clikely at any time to become a public charge.\u201d Aliens within the United States who seek to adjust their status to that of lawful permanent resident (LPR), or who entered the United States without inspection, are also generally subject to this ground of inadmissibility. Similarly, LPRs and other aliens who have been admitted to the United States are removable if they become a public charge within five years after the date of their entry due to causes that pre-existed their entry. These public charge grounds are of recurring interest to Members of Congress and the public because of questions about whether aliens who receive various forms of public assistance are inadmissible or deportable on public charge grounds. \nThe INA does not expressly define what it means for an alien to be a public charge, and, prior to 1996, there was no statutory guidance on what was to be considered in determining whether an alien is inadmissible or deportable on public charge grounds. Then, in 1996, the INA was amended to require that certain factors be taken into account when determining whether aliens are inadmissible on public charge grounds, including the alien\u2019s age, health, family status, financial resources, education, and skills. There still is no similar guidance on the public charge ground of deportability. \nGiven this general lack of statutory guidance, the executive and judicial branches initially construed the meaning of public charge in adjudicating cases involving individual aliens. In so doing, administrative authorities interpreted public charge differently for purposes of the grounds of inadmissibility than for the grounds of deportability. Specifically, public charge was construed broadly in the context of admissibility, with determinations based on a \u201ctotality of the circumstances\u201d test that considered factors like those codified in the INA in 1996. In contrast, in the context of deportability, \u201cpublic charge\u201d was construed more narrowly. Aliens could only be found to be deportable on public charge grounds if (1) they received government assistance that they were legally obligated to repay, (2) the government entity providing the assistance demanded repayment, and (3) the alien or the alien\u2019s sponsor was unable to pay. \nFollowing the enactment of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996, executive agencies issued guidance regarding the public charge grounds. While PRWORA generally restricts noncitizens\u2019 eligibility for \u201cpublic benefits,\u201d it permits them to receive specified benefits, and its enactment raised questions about whether aliens who receive benefits for which they are eligible under PRWORA could potentially be removable on public charge grounds. Immigration officials addressed these questions in a 1999 policy letter that defined public charge, and identified which benefits are considered in public charge determinations. This policy letter underlies current regulations and other guidance on the public charge grounds of inadmissibility and deportability. \nCollectively, the various sources addressing the meaning of public charge suggest that an alien\u2019s receipt of public benefits, per se, is unlikely to result in the alien being deemed removable on public charge grounds. Neither the INA nor implementing regulations address the role that receipt of public benefits plays in public charge determinations. Other agency guidance and court decisions indicate that, while receipt of certain public benefits could be considered in public charge determinations, other factors are also considered (e.g., age, obligation to repay).", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/R43220", "sha1": "4084b52740a6657f26d12a1ae4191ecb7efadf72", "filename": "files/20160105_R43220_4084b52740a6657f26d12a1ae4191ecb7efadf72.html", "images": null }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R43220", "sha1": "82c2805ec18a06b13d39ae7a5fb20d8cedf853a5", "filename": "files/20160105_R43220_82c2805ec18a06b13d39ae7a5fb20d8cedf853a5.pdf", "images": null } ], "topics": [] } ], "topics": [ "Foreign Affairs" ] }