U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services’ (USCIS) new rule regarding the “public charge” ground for immigration inadmissibility is set to go into effect on Oct. 15.

A foreign national who is likely to become a “public charge” is inadmissible to the United States. Currently existing under a framework of the Immigration and Naturalization Act (INA) of 1996 and legacy Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) guidance from 1999, an individual is considered likely to be a public charge, or a burden on the government, if they are or would be “primarily dependent” on the government. The new rule not only significantly expands the list of benefit programs that would deem a foreign national a burden on the government, it also implements a more stringent, subjective test for making the determination.