New Form I-944, Declaration of Self-Sufficiency for Extraordinary ability applicants.
USCIS implemented the Inadmissibility on Public Charge Grounds final rule nationwide, including in Illinois, on Feb. 24, 2020. Previously EB1-A applicants were exempt from public charge requirements. Now according to the final rule that you can read here all applicants adjusting a status (Filling I-485) require to file this form (except those who are exempt). Here is the excerpt from the document: “One commenter requested that individuals applying for lawful permanent resident status via approved EB–1A (extraordinary ability alien), EB–1B (outstanding researcher or scientist), or National Interest Waiver (NIW) petitions be added to the list of those exempted from the rule. The commenter stated that the vast majority of these individuals may need to resort to using the designated benefits, and it would be completely contrary to the intent of Congress in passing the EB–1A, EB–1B and NIW statutes to deny scientific researchers green cards who would otherwise be benefiting the lives of literally millions of U.S. citizens.
Response: DHS disagrees that this rule is contrary to congressional intent in passing the EB–1A, EB–1B and NIW statutes. Congress did not exempt employment-based EB–1A or EB–1B categories, or those seeking an NIW, from the public charge ground of inadmissibility.”
This form must be accompanied with newly introduced evidences such as:
1) Proof of Household income
Your household’s annual gross income should be at least 125 percent (100 percent if you are on active duty, other than in training, in the U.S. Armed Forces) of the Federal Poverty Guidelines for the most recent year as set by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for the household size you listed in Part 2. See
https://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty-guidelines
The supporting evidence can include:
a. IRS Tax return transcript
b. Form W-2 or a Social Security Statement
2) Household’s Assets and Resources
a. Checking and savings account statements;
b. Annuities;
c. Stocks and bonds (cash value)/certificates of deposit;
d. Retirement accounts and educational accounts;
e. Net cash value of real estate holdings; and
f. Any other evidence of substantial assets that can be easily converted into cash.
3) Credit Report and Score
“You can obtain a free credit report once a year under the Fair Credit Reporting Act from each one of the three credit
reporting agencies. You are only required to provide one credit report from any of the three nationwide credit reporting
agencies, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. See https://www.usa.gov/credit-reports for more information. If there
are any errors in the credit report, you should provide evidence from the credit reporting agency that demonstrates that
you reported the error and that the error is under investigation or has been resolved.”
4) Health Insurance
If you don’t have one, you may provide information on how you plan to pay for reasonably anticipated medical costs.
You can find information on how to obtain each evidence and in-depth explanation in the official instruction for the I-944 form here: https://www.uscis.gov/i-944
