Poverty Guidelines for 2011 for I-864

An intending immigrant must prove to the U.S. government that he or she will not become a “public charge” after immigration.  In other words, proof that there is sufficient financial support is one of the many requirements for a person to obtain a U.S. green card.  In all family petitions, the petitioner must promise under oath that the beneficiary immigrant will not become a financial burden of the U.S. by completing a Form I-864, Affidavit of Support.  The only exception is if the beneficiary has already completed 40 quarters of work in the U.S.  The petitioner (also the financial sponsor) must demonstrate in I-864 an income of at least 125 percent of the current poverty level for the his or her household size, plus the beneficiary immigrant(s).

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What if the petitioner cannot meet the I-864 requirements?  Another person may act as a joint sponsor if the petitioner does not have the required financial resources.  Both petitioner and the beneficiary may also use their assets such as real estate, stocks, bonds, cash, etc., to meet the I-864 requirements.  

How do we know what the poverty guidelines are?  It is the job of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to publish poverty guidelines for the public every year. The 2011 guidelines have just been published, and they are listed below.

(For more recent updates, visit 2014 and 2015 guidelines. )

Size of Household	48 Contiguous States, D.C., U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam & CNMI	Alaska	Hawaii
125% of Poverty Line
2	18,387	22,975	21,162
3	23,162	28,950	26,650
4	27,937	34,925	32,137
5	32,712	40,900	37,625
6	37,487	46,875	43,112
7	42,262	52,850	48,600
8	47,037	58,825	54,087
	Add $4,775 for each additional person	Add $5,975 for each additional person	Add $5,487 for each additional person