Sponsor Deeming

Sponsored noncitizens are admitted into the United States because another individual or group has completed an affidavit of support that attests they have sufficient income and resources to meet the noncitizen’s needs.

Deeming is a process in which a portion of the income and resources of a non-citizen’s sponsor is counted as income and resources available to the non-citizen.

Deeming applies only to eligible LPRs whose sponsors signed a legally binding affidavit of support on or after December 19, 1997. Prior to this time, affidavits of support were not legally binding, so the sponsor could not be legally compelled to support the noncitizen.

Guidelines

Sponsorship must be explored in the same way all other aspects of eligibility are explored. Carefully explore the circumstances under which the client entered the United States and whether they may be sponsored. When all reported information and verification are consistent, the client’s statement regarding sponsorship on the Statement of Facts is sufficient. An application cannot be approved until sponsorship is determined.

Note: If it is determined that the noncitizen is sponsored, the EW must also explore sponsorship exceptions.

Affidavit of Support (I-864 or I-864A)

The I-864 or I-864A is a legally binding contract that a sponsor has executed on behalf of a noncitizen as a condition of the noncitizen’s entry or admission into the United States. USCIS began using the I-864 and I-864A on December 19, 1997.

Regulation [63-503.49]

A portion of the income of the sponsor and the sponsor’s spouse, if he or she has executed the USCIS form I-864 or I-864A, is deemed as unearned income for the sponsored noncitizen and shall be considered in determining the eligibility and/or benefit level of the household of which the sponsored noncitizen is a member.

Note: Noncitizens whose sponsor signed an I-134 “Affidavit of Support” used prior to December 19, 1997, are no longer subject to sponsor-deeming rules.

The sponsored noncitizen is subject to the sponsorship provisions until the sponsored noncitizen:

• Achieves United States citizenship through naturalization; or
• Has 40 qualifying quarters of work history; or
• Is no longer a noncitizen lawfully admitted for permanent residence and leaves the United States; or
• Dies.

Note: The sponsor’s support obligation also terminates when the sponsor dies.

Use the following guidelines to help determine if the sponsorship regulations apply to the noncitizen:

• If the noncitizen...
• Gives inconsistent or unclear information, then the EW must clarify the situation.
• Continues to give conflicting information, then the EW requests secondary SAVE to obtain information regarding sponsorship if unable to clarify the situation with the client.
•  If the client states that they are not sponsored, the EW assumes that they are not sponsored as long as the information from the interview, circumstances surrounding the entry into the U.S., responses on the Statement of Facts, and USCIS documents and codes do not indicate that the client is sponsored. Refer to Program Eligibility and USCIS Codes in the Common Place Handbook.
• Does not know if they have been sponsored but is willing to have Social Services contact USCIS for this information, then the EW
  • Completes and sends the G-845S and G-845 Supplement to USCIS requesting Block #3 (Date status was granted) and #7 (Affidavit of Support information) be completed.
  • Set a case alert for 6 months from the request to return the forms.
  • Review and revise the case when the information is received from USCIS, IF the individual is sponsored.

    • Note: The client is eligible to participate for up to six months from the date of the original request for verification. However, any CalFresh benefits paid while USCIS verification was pending, to which the sponsored noncitizen was not eligible, is an overissuance.

• States they are sponsored and the sponsor is cooperating, then the EW applies the income deeming regulations. Approves or denies as appropriate.
• States they are sponsored, and the sponsor refuses to cooperate,
  or
• States they are sponsored and have tried to get their sponsor to cooperate and failed; the EW denies the application for the sponsored noncitizen(s) adults.

CFAP

The CFAP uses all of the federal sponsor deeming rules EXCEPT for the period of deeming, which is limited to THREE years from the date (the date the sponsor signs the affidavit of support) of the execution of the I-864 or I-864A. Refer to Deeming of Sponsor’s Income and Resources for complete CFAP information.

ExampleExample

CE Households

For CE households, the cash aid verifies the information of sponsored noncitizens at the initial application. However, CE households must cooperate in providing the sponsor information needed to determine monthly benefit amounts.

Sponsored Noncitizen's Responsibility

The sponsored noncitizen is responsible to:

• Obtain the cooperation of the sponsor.
• Provide the names (or other identifying factors) of other noncitizens the sponsor has agreed to support.
• Report changes in circumstances of the sponsor or sponsor's spouse, such as loss of employment or death.
• Report the number of dependents who are claimed or could be claimed as dependents by the sponsor or the sponsor's spouse

SAR 22 [63-405.7]

The “Sponsor’s Statement of Facts Income and Resources” (SAR 22) must be completed by the sponsor and the sponsor's spouse at the initial application and every recertification. The sponsor's income must be verified. If necessary, the EW must assist the noncitizen in obtaining verification.

Reminder: The SAR 22 is NOT required when the sponsored noncitizen meets the indigence exception or is exempted from deeming.

 

The sponsored noncitizen(s) is ineligible until the SAR 22 is received and verified. Allow 30 days for the sponsor to provide this. Use the following chart when a SAR 22 and/or income verification have not been received after 30 days.

• If the household fails (for example, the household is willing to provide the information but cannot obtain it from the sponsor and spouse) or REFUSES to provide a complete SAR 22 with income verification, then the sponsored noncitizen shall be ineligible. In determining the eligibility and/or benefit level of the remaining household members, the income of the ineligible noncitizen (excluding the attributed income of the noncitizen’s sponsor and sponsor’s spouse) shall be treated using excluded ineligible noncitizen rules.
• If the same sponsor sponsors all of the household members, then all adults (18 years of age and over) in the household are ineligible.

When SAR 22 information and verification are received, follow Budgeting Concepts to consider income from the sponsor and the sponsor's spouse for the sponsored noncitizen(s).

Sponsorship Exceptions [63-036, 63-403.6, 63-503.492]

Certain noncitizens are exempt from provisions for sponsored noncitizens. Do not apply sponsorship regulations if:

• The non-citizen or citizen child is under 18 years of age.

  • Note: If the child turns 18 during certification, the sponsor-deeming rule does not apply until the next recertification.

• The noncitizen participates in CalFresh as a member of his/her sponsor’s household. If the sponsor receives CalFresh in another household, the sponsor is not exempt from the deeming exemption.
• The sponsor was an organization, institution, or group (e.g., VOLAG) rather than an individual.
• The noncitizen is not required to have a sponsor under the INA. This includes but is not limited to, a refugee, Cuban-Haitian entrant, parolee, or an individual granted asylum in the U.S.
  • ExampleExample

    An applicant who is a Public Interest Parolee under Section 212(d)(5) of the INA is sponsored by his uncle who earns $4,000 per month. The sponsorship regulations do not apply to this individual and none of the uncle's earnings would be deemed to the CalFresh household. Any payments from the uncle to the noncitizen are considered income and are subject to the standard regulations on income and budgeting.

  • Exception: Under certain circumstances, the income from a sponsoring agency to some Soviet Jewish refugees admitted during the Federal fiscal year 1990 may be counted. Refer to Budgeting Concepts.

• The noncitizen is determined to be a battered noncitizen. [For definitions and verification requirements, Refer to the Common-Place Handbook, “Battered Noncitizens,” pages 14-15.]
  • The battered noncitizen is exempt from sponsorship requirements for 12 months after it has been determined that there is a substantial connection between the abuse/battery and the need for benefits, and the battered individual does NOT live with the batterer.
  • After 12 months, the batterer’s income will not be deemed if the battery is recognized by a court or the USCIS, the battery has a substantial connection to the need for benefits, and the noncitizen does NOT live with the batterer.
• Sponsored noncitizen adults wish to apply only for their children or other eligible household members (“opt-out”),
• Households with income below 130 percent of FPL (indigence), or
• Domestic violence survivors.

Indigent Noncitizen Determination

• A sponsored noncitizen is determined indigent if the sum of the eligible sponsored noncitizen household’s own current income and any cash contribution or in-kind assistance received from the sponsor and others does not exceed 130 percent of the FPL for the household size.
• The adult sponsored noncitizen is entitled to self-declare that s/he is indigent, in which case a determination of deemed income from the sponsor and verification of the sponsor’s income should not be required by the county, as it creates a barrier to program access.
• The sponsored noncitizen may self-declare that the sponsor does not support s/he. If the sponsored noncitizen makes a self-declaration of non-support, the county can only make the indigence determination based on the sponsored noncitizen household’s actual income and any other income actually received from others.
• If the indigent adult sponsored noncitizen declares receipt of income from a sponsor or any other source, only the amount of income actually received is considered to be the sponsored noncitizen's income.
• If the sponsored noncitizen cannot obtain verification from the sponsor, the county must accept other verification, including a written statement from the sponsored noncitizen. Indigent households with noncitizen adults are not denied or terminated if the sponsor does not provide income verification if the noncitizen otherwise verifies receipt of the income (e.g., self-declaration).
• For a 12-month period beginning on the date a noncitizen is determined to be indigent, the sponsor deeming rules are suspended, and only the actual amount provided to the noncitizen by the sponsor shall be treated as income to the noncitizen.
• Income-in-kind is used to determine the indigent but is NOT used to determine eligibility or benefit level. If the sponsored noncitizen cannot obtain verification from the sponsor, the county must accept a written statement from the sponsored noncitizen. Indigent households with noncitizen adults are not denied or terminated if the sponsor does not provide income verification.
• Once a determination of indigence has been made, the noncitizen must be considered indigent for 12 months from the date of eligibility, regardless of any secondary information that may be obtained from the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) system on the sponsor during this time. 
• This provision begins from the date a sponsored noncitizen is determined to be indigent and ends the last day of the twelfth month after that date.
• The 12-month period can be renewed yearly.
  
   The 12-month reevaluation is not required for households certified for 24 months and ESAP households unless the county has received new information.

ExampleExample

Valuation of In-Kind Assistance to Determine Indigence

A value for in-kind assistance should be used solely to make the indigent determination. Income-in-kind is used to determine indigent eligibility but is NOT used to determine eligibility or benefit level.
Regular and continual purchases completed for an individual or household are considered in-kind assistance.

ExampleExample

Temporary assistance, such as clothing, food, housing, money, or utilities, is not counted as in-kind assistance for determining indigence.

ExampleExample

When the individual declares in-kind assistance, and the value must be considered in determining indigence, the following applies:

• If the individual does not know the actual amount, the CalWORKs Income In Kind Chart in the Chart Book is used.
• If the individual provides an actual in-kind amount more than the chart, the actual value can be used to determine indigence, and no verification is needed other than a declaration that the in-kind assistance exists.
• If the individual chooses to provide a value lower than the chart, a ten-day notice must be sent to give the household time to provide the actual amount.

  • Note: If the verification is not received within ten days and the individual has not requested help in getting it, the county is not to deny the application but to use the value from the CalWORKs Income In Kind Chart for the items considered in-kind assistance.

The valuation of in-kind assistance when determining indigence should NOT be used in the following situations:

• When determining eligibility or benefit levels for the noncitizen household or
• Quid pro quo, an item or service traded in return for something of value, or,
• When the individual declares that no in-kind assistance is provided.

Referral to United States Immigration Services (USCIS) - Indigent Noncitizen

Each indigent determination must be reported to USCIS by providing the sponsor's name and the sponsored noncitizen.

If the sponsored noncitizen is applying for assistance rather than opting out and is determined to meet the indigence exemption from sponsor deeming, the EW must send a complete SCD 2343  to ProgramBureau@ssa.sccgov.org  providing the following information:

• Sponsor’s name,
• Sponsored noncitizen’s name,
• Case name,
• Case number, and
• Date of indigence determination.

 

Program will submit the required information to USCIS.

 

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services
Office of Policy and Strategy
5900 Capital Gateway Drive
Camp Springs, MD 20746