Guide to Form I-864, Affidavit of Support (2024)

Purpose | Who Files It | Qualified Sponsor | Instructions | Where to File | Exemptions | Get Help | I-864 FAQs

At the time of applying for a green card, the following immigrants are generally required to submit a Form I-864 completed by the sponsor:

• All immediate relatives of U.S. citizens (spouses, parents, and unmarried children under 21 years of age);
• All family-based preference immigrants (sons and daughters of U.S. citizens; spouses and unmarried sons and daughters of lawful permanent residents; and brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens); and
• Employment-based preference immigrants in cases only when a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or U.S. national relative filed the immigrant visa petition or such relative has a significant ownership interest (five percent or more) in the entity that filed the petition.

The green card applicant submits the I-864 affidavit with Form I-485 when adjusting status inside the United States. Individuals applying through a U.S. embassy or consulate will submit the I-864 affidavit to the National Visa Center when it is requested. In some limited cases, an applicant from the above categories may be exempt from filing an affidavit.

A sponsor completes Form I-864, Affidavit of Support, on behalf of the intending immigrant. Generally, to help the intending immigrant overcome the public charge ground and obtain a green card, the sponsor must:

• Be a U.S. citizen, U.S. national or lawful permanent resident age 18 or older;
• Have income at or above 125 percent of the federal poverty lines for the household size; and
• Have a U.S. domicile.

Certain active-duty military sponsors may only need to show income that meets or exceeds 100 percent of the FPG.

If there is a qualifying relative (spouse, adult child, parent, or sibling) that lives in the same household as the main sponsor, they may act as a household member that contributes income. A spouse who earns income is commonly used as a household member. In some cases, the intending immigrant may act as the household member. Generally, a household member must submit Form I-864A (Contract Between Sponsor and Household Member) with the primary sponsor's I-864. Intending immigrants acting as household members do not need to submit the I-864A supplement unless they have an accompanying spouse or children.

When the intending immigrant participates on Form I-864 as a household member, immigration law (8 CFR § 213a.1) makes it clear that their income must come from “lawful employment in the United States or from some other lawful source that will continue to be available to the intending immigrant after they acquire permanent resident status.” In other words, the intending immigrant's income from a U.S. job must come from authorized employment through an employment visa or work performed while authorized through an employment authorization document.

CitizenPath's easy-to-use website helps you prepare the affidavit quickly and accurately. Our online service provides step-by-step I-864 instructions so that you can fill out the form in the same day. We even give you a money-back guarantee that USCIS will approve your affidavit.

If you prefer to fill out the Form I-864 PDF, you can download instructions from USCIS or follow this summary of directions.

• Type or print answers in black ink only.
• Enter “N/A” if an answer is not applicable and "NONE" if your answer is zero.
• Foreign language documents must be accompanied by a full English certified translation.
• Submit photocopies for all supporting documents unless an original document is specifically required.
• Form I-864 does not need to be notarized. However, the form must have the sponsor's actual signature in black ink. Do not use a digital signature. If adjusting status, submit the affidavit with the original ink signature. If submitting the affidavit to the National Visa Center, you may scan the original signed document.

• For Basis for Filing Affidavit of Support, indicate your specific role as the sponsor. Most sponsors are also the petitioner. Select a different basis if it applies.

• For Mailing Address, provide a mailing address where the intending immigrant (principal beneficiary) can safely receive mail. USCIS will mail the immigrant notices at this address.
• For Other Information, supply the information requested including a reliable phone number. USCIS does not require the immigrant to have an alien registration number or USCIS online account number.

• For Information About the Immigrants You Are Sponsoring, indicate whom you will sponsor. Most sponsors will be sponsoring the principal immigrant named in Part 2. However, additional family members should only be listed if they are also derivative beneficiaries on the same visa petition. Do not include any relative listed on a separate visa petition.

• For Sponsor's Mailing Address, again, provide a mailing address where you can safely receive mail. USCIS will mail the you notices at this address.
• For Other Information, indicate your domicile as the United States. If you are not currently living in the United States, know your strategy for reestablishing domicile in the U.S.

• For Sponsor's Household Size, carefully add household members in the boxes provided. Do not count any member of your house more than once. Therefore, if you are sponsoring a spouse, enter "0" in the space for a spouse. You have already counted this person as the immigrant. Generally, your household will match up with the number of people on your tax return (plus one for the intending immigrant).
• For Sponsor's Employment and Income, indicate your type of employment or employment status. Enter your current individual income. In other words, write the amount that you estimate that you (sponsor) will earn in the current year. If you are choosing to add other household members' income, you may also include it here. Indicate if you will be submitting Form I-864A for the additional household members. You must include I-864A unless the household member is also the intending immigrant and does not have any accompanying spouse or children.
• For Use of Assets to Supplement Income, you may skip this section if you've entered an income in the previous section that safely exceeds 125 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. If you are unable to show income to meet the requirement, you may potentially use assets and personal property to bridge the gap.

• For Sponsor's Contract and Statement, read this section thoroughly to understand your obligations as an I-864 sponsor. Provide reliable contact information and sign your affidavit with black ink.
• For Interpreter and Preparer, provide information if applicable. If you prepared your Form I-864, it’s only necessary to sign as the “sponsor.” If another person translated or prepared the affidavit for you, be sure Parts 9 and 10 are filled in and signed appropriately.

When filing Form I-864 via consular processing (application for an immigrant visa through a U.S. embassy or consulate), applicants should submit the I-864 and all supporting documents to the National Visa Center (NVC). The applicant's case may be significantly delayed if documents are not submitted at the same time. If you are acting as the applicant’s agent, forward the entire Affidavit of Support package to the NVC as instructed. Otherwise forward the documents to the intending immigrant.

When submitting the I-864 to the NVC, an ‘original’ or ‘wet ink’ signature is not required. You may scan the signed affidavit and forward it to the NVC (or the intending immigrant). Only adjustment of status applicants filing Form I-485 from within the U.S. must submit a wet ink signature document.

Certain classes of immigrants are exempted from the public charge test. In other words, the rule does not apply to certain non-citizens such as: asylees, refugees, special immigrant juveniles, Afghan and Iraqi interpreters, and VAWA self-petitioners. View a list of public charge exemptions. Even if you are not exempted from the rule, there are certain I-864 exemptions.

Most family-based (and even some employment-based) immigrants must have an I-864 sponsor. There are some exemptions for certain people in these categories. The following types of intending immigrants do not need to file Form I-864, Affidavit of Support:

• Any intending immigrant who has earned or can receive credit for 40 qualifying quarters (credits) of work in the United States. In addition to their own work, intending immigrants may be able to secure credit for work performed by a spouse during marriage and by their parents while the immigrants were under 18 years of age. The Social Security Administration (SSA) can provide information on how to count quarters of work earned or credited and how to provide evidence of such on the SSA website.
• Any intending immigrant who will, upon admission, acquire U.S. citizenship under section 320 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), as amended by the Child Citizenship Act of 2000 (CCA);
• Self-petitioning widows or widowers who have an approved Form I-360, Petition for Amerasian, Widow(er), or Special Immigrant; and
• Self-petitioning battered spouses and children who have an approved Form I-360.

If you do qualify for one of the exemptions above, it's necessary to communicate to the U.S. government by submitting Form I-864W, Intending Immigrant’s Affidavit of Support Exemption, instead of Form I-864.