Form I-864 (Affidavit of Support)

What is Form I-864?

Form I-864 is the central financial document in nearly every family-based green card case and in employment-based cases where a relative is the petitioner or where a relative owns 5% or more of the petitioning company. It is signed under penalty of perjury and creates a real, enforceable contract — the immigrant or a means-tested benefit agency can sue the sponsor in federal or state court to recover support. The official form, instructions, and current edition are at uscis.gov/i-864.

Who has to file Form I-864?

The U.S. citizen or LPR petitioner who filed Form I-130 must file Form I-864 for the principal immigrant and for each derivative (spouse, children). In employment-based cases where the petitioner is a relative of the immigrant — or where the immigrant’s relative owns 5% or more of the petitioning company — that relative must file Form I-864. The I-864 is filed at one of two stages depending on the path:

• Adjustment of status (Form I-485) — I-864 is submitted to USCIS with the I-485 package.
• Consular processing — I-864 is uploaded to the National Visa Center through CEAC after the NVC opens the case.

The 125% poverty guideline income threshold

The sponsor must demonstrate household income equal to or above 125% of the federal poverty guidelines for the sponsor’s household size. Active-duty U.S. military sponsoring a spouse or child have a reduced threshold of 100%. USCIS publishes the current numbers each year as Form I-864P.

The sponsor’s household size includes:

• The sponsor
• The sponsor’s spouse, even if not jointly sponsoring
• Each dependent claimed on the most recent federal tax return
• Each prior immigrant the sponsor sponsored on a prior I-864 who has not yet ended that obligation
• The new intending immigrant and any derivatives in this petition

Income is normally measured from the most recent federal tax transcript. If current income has changed materially (job change, raise, new income source), the sponsor can document current income with pay stubs, an employer letter, and recent bank statements. Income alone does not have to clear the threshold — assets (cash, brokerage, real estate equity) can be counted at 1/3 face value (1/5 for spouses of U.S. citizens applying to adjust).

Joint sponsors & household members

If the petitioner cannot meet the 125% threshold on their own, two paths exist:

• Household member income (Form I-864A). A spouse, adult child, parent, or sibling who lives in the petitioner’s household and is related by blood, marriage, or adoption can pool their income with the petitioner by signing Form I-864A. This is not a separate sponsor — it just adds the household member’s income to the petitioner’s.
• Joint sponsor (separate Form I-864). A joint sponsor is a wholly separate sponsor who alone must meet the 125% threshold for their own household plus the intending immigrant. The joint sponsor is jointly and severally liable with the petitioner. The intending immigrant can sue either sponsor for full support.

How long the obligation lasts

The contract continues until any one of these five events:

1. The sponsored immigrant becomes a U.S. citizen.
2. The sponsored immigrant earns 40 qualifying quarters of work (typically 10 years).
3. The sponsored immigrant permanently leaves the U.S.
4. The sponsored immigrant dies.
5. The sponsor dies (terminates that specific sponsor’s obligation; joint sponsor remains liable).

Divorce does not end the I-864 obligation. A divorced petitioning spouse remains liable to the former immigrant spouse until one of the five termination events occurs. Several federal circuit courts have enforced I-864 obligations against ex-spouses in family court proceedings — a sponsor cannot waive the obligation by divorce decree.

Public benefits and the reimbursement obligation

If the sponsored immigrant receives a federal, state, or local means-tested public benefit during the I-864 period, the agency that paid the benefit can sue the sponsor for reimbursement. Means-tested public benefits include SSI, TANF, SNAP, Medicaid (non-emergency), and state programs that explicitly count. Several major federal programs are not considered means-tested for I-864 purposes — emergency Medicaid, school lunches, public education, immunizations, disaster relief, Pell grants, federal student loans, and Social Security disability/retirement.

Form I-864EZ & Form I-864W

• Form I-864EZ is the simplified version. The petitioner is the only sponsor, the immigrant is the only sponsored person, and the petitioner’s income (from the tax transcript) alone meets the threshold. Most spouse cases qualify.
• Form I-864W is a waiver, not an affidavit. It is filed when the immigrant is exempt from the I-864 requirement — for example, an immigrant who has already earned 40 qualifying work quarters, certain widows/widowers self-petitioning under VAWA, and certain children who automatically derive citizenship under the Child Citizenship Act.

Common Form I-864 pitfalls

• Wrong household size. Forgetting prior sponsored immigrants is the most common error.
• Self-employed income that does not show on the tax return. USCIS uses the “total income” line, which for sole proprietors is post-deduction. Many self-employed sponsors have actual cash flow far above their tax-return income but cannot use it.
• Stale tax returns. The most recent federal tax transcript must be filed if the sponsor was legally required to file. Missing tax filings are routinely a deal-breaker.
• Petitioner not domiciled in the U.S. The petitioner must show U.S. domicile — living abroad temporarily with documented intent to return is OK, but a petitioner who has moved abroad permanently is generally ineligible to file I-864 until they re-establish domicile.
• Failing to update on Form I-865. Sponsors must report address changes on Form I-865 within 30 days, throughout the I-864 obligation period.

Related forms & concepts

• Form I-864A — Contract Between Sponsor and Household Member, used to add a household member’s income to the sponsor’s.
• Form I-864EZ — Simplified affidavit for sole-petitioner, sole-immigrant, income-only cases.
• Form I-864W — Request for Exemption from the Affidavit of Support.
• Form I-864P — Annual income threshold tables.
• Form I-865 — Sponsor’s Notice of Change of Address.
• Form I-134 — Declaration of Financial Support, a similar but non-contractual affidavit used for K-1 fiancé(e) visas and certain nonimmigrant categories.

Frequently asked questions

Go deeper

For the broader green-card path that the I-864 is part of, see our Form I-130 Step-by-Step Filing Guide. For K-1 fiancé(e) visa cases that use Form I-134 at the consular stage and Form I-864 at adjustment, see our K-1 Fiancé(e) Visa Timeline. Visit the Immigration Glossary hub for related terms.