2015 Poverty Guidelines Have Been Released

2015 Poverty Guidelines Have Been Released

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released the 2015 Poverty Guidelines on January 22, 2015. The Poverty Guidelines are separated into three charts. One chart is for the 48 contiguous states plus the District of Columbia. The other two charts are for Alaska and Hawaii. The 2015 Poverty Guidelines are below. The charts may also be found on HHS’s website at: http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/15poverty.cfm.

The Poverty Guidelines are used for family-based immigration petitions and some employment-based immigration petitions, with limited exceptions. For such petitions, Form I-864 must be filed to show the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) that the petitioner and beneficiary have adequate financial means to support themselves and are not likely to rely on the U.S. government for financial assistance.

A U.S. citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident seeking to sponsor a family member for an immigrant visa or adjustment of status to a permanent resident must demonstrate that they have an income level that is equal to or more than 125% of the most recent Poverty Guideline numbers. The required income amount is determined by the total number of sponsored family members, including all dependents. If the sponsored family member later receives a means-tested public benefit from a federal, state, or local agency, that agency may require the petitioner to reimburse the agency for the benefits provided. These and other financial obligations remain in effect until the I-864 obligations end.

More detailed information about Form I-864 and the petitioner’s financial obligations may be found on the USCIS website: http://www.uscis.gov/i-864.

2015 Poverty Guidelines for the 48 Contiguous States and the District of Columbia

2015 Poverty Guidelines for Alaska

2015 Poverty Guidelines for Hawaii