Explainer · Policy
Public charge returns to the visa window. What it means for SIVs.
New State Department guidance, filed in federal court on September 21, 2026, directs consular officers to apply public charge vetting to immigrant visa applicants, and it expressly includes Special Immigrant Visas. Afghan SIVs are exempt from public charge by law, and AfghanEvac’s position is that the government cannot lawfully apply it to them. Here is what the guidance says, what the law requires, and where we go from here.
Last updated September 22, 2026
This guidance does not create a new public charge test. After federal courts vacated the blanket pause on immigrant visas, the State Department reinstated a case-by-case public charge review at the visa window, with a mandatory worksheet, added layers of supervisory review, and required officer training. The cable that orders that review expressly includes SIVs among the applicants to vet, even though SIV applicants are exempt from public charge by law.Declaration of John Armstrong and Department of State cables 26 STATE 80666, 26 STATE 86164, and 24 STATE 41484, filed in Medani v. Trump, No. 5:26-cv-06332 (N.D. Cal., Sept. 21, 2026).
Start here
How we got here.
In January 2026, the State Department paused immigrant visa issuance for nationals of 75 countries, citing public charge concerns, and separately paused Diversity Visa issuance. Afghanistan was the first country named on the 75-country list.
In August 2026, two federal courts intervened. In Medani v. Trump, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California temporarily vacated the immigrant visa pause and the Diversity Visa pause and directed the Department to resume ordinary adjudication and to reconsider applications refused solely under those policies. A parallel order in Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. v. Rubio reached the related public charge pause guidance. In its September 21, 2026 filing, the Department told the court it is treating both pauses as no longer in effect. In their place, the Department has put a case-by-case public charge review, described in the cables filed with the court.
Important for Afghans. The presidential travel ban remains in force. Proclamation 10998, effective January 1, 2026, suspended entry for Afghan nationals and removed the Afghan SIV exemption. Even setting public charge aside, that proclamation still bars visa issuance and entry for most Afghans, so public charge is a second barrier layered on top of the travel ban. See our travel ban explainer.
What the guidance requires
A case-by-case review, in place of a blanket pause.
The cables direct consular officers to apply a rigorous public charge analysis to immigrant visa applicants who are subject to the ground, and they add several layers of review before and after a visa is issued.
A mandatory public charge worksheet
Since August 15, 2026, officers must complete a worksheet weighing the statutory factors under INA 212(a)(4)(A): age; health; family status; assets, resources, and financial status; education and skills; and any past receipt of public cash assistance or long-term institutionalization at government expense.
Required officer training first
A September 1, 2026 cable requires all consular officers to complete public charge training within 60 days, and directs posts to finish training before resuming processing. Delays should be expected even where the pause is lifted.
Expanded supervisory review
Consular managers must expand their review of immigrant visa adjudications and confirm, in the case notes, how officers resolved the applicant’s eligibility and any national security or identity concerns.
A second adjudication review
After an officer finds an applicant eligible, the case must be print authorized, a manager must complete a review, and the case is submitted for an additional adjudication review through a dedicated app before the officer proceeds.
Action before and after issuance
The declaration states that after that review, an officer will assess whether further action is needed, including action to “spoil” a visa before issuance or, if a visa has been printed, whether “revocation is appropriate.”
SIVs pulled into the review
The August 15 cable directs officers to vet “all IV applicants” and, in a parenthetical, expressly includes SIVs. On its face, that brings SIV applicants within a public charge vetting regime from which they are exempt by law.
Who it reaches
Exempt from public charge, or subject to it.
The most important question is not what the guidance says. It is which category you are in. Public charge has never applied to SIVs, refugees, or asylees, and this guidance does not change the law that exempts them.
- Who
- Afghan Special Immigrant Visa applicants and holders; refugees; asylees adjusting under INA section 209; and others Congress exempted.
- Statutory basis
- Afghan SIVs are exempt under the statutes that created the program: Section 602(b) of the Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2009 and, for interpreters, Section 1059(a)(2) of the FY2006 NDAA. Refugees and asylees are exempt under INA 207, 208, and 209. The exemption is reflected in the USCIS Policy Manual and the Foreign Affairs Manual.
- Affidavit of Support
- Not required. SIV applicants do not file an I-864 and do not have to demonstrate the ability to support themselves.
- What the guidance changes
- The public charge test should not be applied to them, and their lawful receipt of a public benefit carries no public charge consequence.
- Where we stand
- The guidance directs this vetting at SIVs anyway. Applying public charge to an exempt SIV applicant, or requesting an Affidavit of Support from one, is contrary to the statutory exemption, and AfghanEvac is prepared to challenge it.
- Who
- Applicants for family-based and most employment-based immigrant visas, and Diversity Visa applicants, who are not in an exempt category.
- Affidavit of Support
- Generally required. The worksheet includes a joint-sponsor review and a financial review for cases in which an Affidavit of Support is needed.
- What the guidance changes
- Officers apply the full totality-of-circumstances worksheet, the added layers of supervisory review, and the pre- and post-issuance review described in the declaration.
- The Afghan wrinkle
- An Afghan relative immigrating through a family-based petition, rather than as an SIV, falls in this column.
Bottom line For SIVs, refugees, and asylees, the law is settled: public charge does not apply to you. The State Department has directed this review at SIVs anyway. AfghanEvac’s position is that it cannot lawfully do so, and we will contest any case where it tries.
The practical effect
The pause is lifted. Normal processing is not back.
The Department told the court the blanket pauses are no longer in effect. In their place is a review that adds a worksheet, two layers of supervisory sign-off, and a post-issuance check to every case that is subject to the ground.
All consular officers must complete public charge training within that window, and posts must finish training before they resume processing. For a population already facing long waits, added steps and required training mean more delay, even for applicants who are not legally subject to the test.
What to do now
Know your category, then act.
If you are an SIV applicant or holder
You are exempt from the public charge test, and you are not required to file an Affidavit of Support. Do not give up a benefit you lawfully receive, and do not assume you must prove financial self-sufficiency. If a consular officer applies public charge to you or asks you for an Affidavit of Support, tell your attorney.
Confirm your category
Know whether you are immigrating as an SIV, as a refugee or asylee, or through a family-based or employment-based route. The route determines whether public charge applies to you at all.
Keep your records
Keep copies of your filings, your case number, and any correspondence from the post, including any request tied to finances or an Affidavit of Support.
Get real legal help before changing anything
If you are in a category subject to public charge, or you are unsure, consult a licensed immigration attorney or a Department of Justice accredited representative before you drop a benefit or file anything. AfghanEvac cannot provide individual legal advice.
Report improper public charge requests
If a consular officer applies public charge to an exempt SIV applicant or asks for an Affidavit of Support, tell your attorney and let AfghanEvac know, so the pattern can be documented.
Set expectations
What this guidance does not do.
- Change the statutory exemption for SIV applicants, refugees, or asylees
- Require SIV applicants to file an Affidavit of Support or prove financial self-sufficiency
- Make lawful receipt of a public benefit a public charge for people in exempt categories
- Reinstate the blanket pause on immigrant visas from 75 countries, which the courts vacated
- Lift the presidential travel ban, Proclamation 10998, which separately suspends entry and visa issuance for Afghan nationals
- Change parole, work authorization, or asylum for people already in the United States
Frequently asked questions
The questions people are asking.
Are Afghan SIVs now subject to public charge?
By law, no. SIV applicants are exempt from the public charge ground and do not file an Affidavit of Support. The new State Department guidance nonetheless directs public charge vetting at SIVs. AfghanEvac’s position is that the government cannot lawfully apply public charge to a category Congress exempted, and we are prepared to challenge any case where it does.
Is the immigrant visa pause back?
No. Federal courts vacated the 75-country immigrant visa pause and the Diversity Visa pause, and the State Department told the court it is treating both as no longer in effect. It has replaced them with a case-by-case review.
Does this mean Afghan SIVs can now be issued visas?
No. A separate barrier, the presidential travel ban under Proclamation 10998, effective January 1, 2026, still suspends entry and visa issuance for Afghan nationals and removed the Afghan SIV exemption. Public charge is an additional hurdle layered on top of the travel ban, not a replacement for it. See our travel ban explainer.
Do SIV applicants have to file an Affidavit of Support now?
No. SIV applicants are not required to file an I-864 or to demonstrate the ability to support themselves.
Should I stop using benefits I qualify for?
No. For people in exempt categories, lawful receipt of a benefit is not a public charge and carries no consequence for a future case. No one should be frightened out of support they are entitled to.
Can a visa be revoked after it is issued?
The declaration describes a review that can lead to action before issuance or, for a printed visa, a revocation assessment. That review runs on cases subject to the grounds of inadmissibility. If you believe your case was affected, talk to an attorney.
Was Afghanistan on the 75-country list?
Yes. Afghanistan was the first country named when the immigrant visa pause was announced in January 2026.
What we’re asking
The State Department should show its work.
This raises a simple question. Are Afghan SIV applicants being subjected to a public charge test from which Congress explicitly exempted them?
Our allies have already spent years proving their service, undergoing security checks, and waiting for America to keep its word. The government has now disclosed additional review that can occur even after an officer finds an applicant eligible, potentially resulting in a printed visa being spoiled or an issued visa being considered for revocation. If Afghan SIVs are being subjected to these procedures, the State Department owes them and the American public an explanation.
Our ask. AfghanEvac is calling on the State Department to disclose how these procedures are being applied to Afghan SIVs, and how many cases have been adjudicated, issued, refused, or subjected to additional review.
Go deeper
Read the filing and track what comes next.
Read the court filing and the State Department cables, and follow the litigation. The one thing to carry from this page: SIVs, refugees, and asylees are exempt from public charge, and no one in an exempt category should be frightened out of a benefit or pushed to prove self-sufficiency they do not owe.
Related explainers
AfghanEvac’s position The Special Immigrant Visa that Congress created is a promise, not a discretionary favor, and the law exempts SIV holders from the public charge test. Writing “SIVs” into a State Department cable does not change the law. We are calling on the State Department to disclose how these procedures are being applied to Afghan SIVs, we will challenge any attempt to accomplish case by case what the courts stopped wholesale, and we will help any Afghan ally caught in it. America made these allies a promise. The administration does not get to rewrite the terms.
Statement from AfghanEvac
On Newly Disclosed State Department Guidance on Afghan SIVs
September 22, 2026
Afghan Special Immigrant Visa applicants earned their place in this country the hard way, by standing with the United States, often at the cost of everything they had. Congress exempted them from the public charge ground of inadmissibility. Public charge does not apply to them.
New State Department guidance filed in federal court expressly includes SIVs in enhanced immigrant visa vetting while implementing a new system of public charge review. That raises a simple question: Are Afghan SIV applicants being subjected to a public charge test from which Congress explicitly exempted them?
You do not means-test a promise. Afghan SIVs are exempt from public charge by statute. Writing “SIVs” into a State Department cable does not change the law. We are glad the 75-country immigrant visa pause was struck down. We will challenge any attempt to accomplish case by case what the government can no longer do wholesale.
And let us be clear: the separate travel ban still bars our Afghan allies at the door. If this guidance is being used to subject Afghan SIVs to public charge review, it would amount to a second lock on a gate the administration has already shut.
Our allies have already spent years proving their service, undergoing security checks, and waiting for America to keep its word. The government has now disclosed additional review that can occur even after an officer finds an applicant eligible, potentially resulting in a printed visa being spoiled or an issued visa being considered for revocation. If Afghan SIVs are being subjected to these procedures, the State Department owes them and the American public an explanation.
AfghanEvac will track this guidance and document cases where public charge is applied to exempt Afghan SIV applicants. We are calling on the State Department to disclose how these procedures are being applied to Afghan SIVs and how many cases have been adjudicated, issued, refused, or subjected to additional review.
America made these allies a promise. The administration does not get to rewrite the terms.
Shawn VanDiver, President and Founder of AfghanEvac
Media contact: press@afghanevac.org
This explainer summarizes court filings and government guidance for informational purposes and is not legal advice. Details are drawn from the Declaration of John Armstrong and Department of State cables 26 STATE 80666, 26 STATE 86164, and 24 STATE 41484, filed in Medani v. Trump, No. 5:26-cv-06332-EJD (N.D. Cal.). Some portions of the cables were filed in redacted form. The Afghan SIV public charge exemption is grounded in Section 602(b) of the Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2009 and Section 1059(a)(2) of the FY2006 NDAA, and is reflected in the USCIS Policy Manual (Volume 8, Part G, Chapter 3) and the Foreign Affairs Manual (9 FAM 302.8). Dates, docket references, and cable numbers should be confirmed against the filed documents. For guidance on your own case, consult a qualified immigration attorney or a Department of Justice accredited representative.