Poverty Guidelines for 2013 for Affidavit of Support of Immigrants

In all family-based immigrant visa 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 Form I-864 an income of at least 125 percent of the current poverty level for the his household size, which must include the immigrants and their dependents.  For many applicants, the I-864 form turns out to be the most challenging document to handle.  In fact, a good number of immigrant petitions are delayed or denied due to the petitioner's failure to properly fill out the I-864 and related forms, or produce sufficient documents to prove financial ability.  

If the petitioner cannot meet the I-864 requirements, another person may act as a joint sponsor and complete his or her own Affidavit of Support.  Both petitioner and the beneficiary may also use their assets such as real estate, stocks, bonds, cash, etc., to meet the I-864 requirements. 

Every year, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) publishes the poverty guidelines for the public. The 2013 guidelines have just been published, and they are listed below.

Size of Household	48 Contiguous States,D.C., U.S. Virgin Islands,Guam & CNMI	Alaska	Hawaii
125% of Poverty Line (U.S. dollars)
2	19,387	24,225	22,312
3	24,412	30,512	28,087
4	29,437	36,800	33,862
5	34,462	43,087	39,637
6	39,487	49,375	45,412
7	44,512	55,662	51,187
8	49,537	61,950	56,962
	Add $5,025 for each additional person	Add $6,287 for each additional person	Add $5,775 for each additional person