Form I-864 Affidavit of Support: Complete Guide (2026)

Federal law requires an affidavit of support for immediate relatives of U.S. citizens (spouses, unmarried children under 21, and parents of citizens 21 or older), for every family preference category (F1 through F4), and for K-1 fiance(e)s and K-2 children adjusting status on that basis. Some employment-based immigrants need one too: when a U.S. citizen, national or permanent resident relative filed the Form I-140, or owns 5 percent or more of the company that filed it.

The petitioner always signs. The person who filed Form I-130, I-129F, I-600 or I-800 must complete and sign Form I-864 even if a joint sponsor carries all of the income. Every sponsor must be at least 18 and domiciled in the United States, meaning the U.S. is the principal residence or the sponsor will re-establish it no later than the immigrant’s admission or adjustment.

Form I-864EZ is off the table if you are a joint sponsor, a substitute sponsor, sponsoring derivatives on the same petition, relying on self-employment, rental or investment income, or using assets. In those cases, file the full Form I-864.

Who is exempt. An intending immigrant does not need an affidavit if they have earned, or can be credited with, 40 qualifying quarters of U.S. work. Quarters can include work by a spouse during the marriage and by parents while the immigrant was under 18. Also exempt: a child who will automatically become a citizen under INA section 320 on admission, self-petitioning widow(er)s, and VAWA self-petitioners. Diversity visa winners, asylees, refugees, most employment-based workers whose I-140 was not filed by a relative, and dozens of humanitarian categories are not required to file one either.

Adjustment applicants who qualify for an exemption no longer file Form I-864W. The current I-485 instructions tell them to request the exemption by selecting the matching option in Part 3 of Form I-485, with Social Security earnings records where the claim rests on 40 quarters. Consular applicants should follow the National Visa Center’s instructions in their CEAC account before paying any affidavit fee.

Household size sets the income line, and it is the most common place sponsors go wrong. USCIS counts every person you are financially responsible for, no matter where they live, and each person only once.

Worked example. A U.S. citizen in Texas sponsors her husband. She has a 15-year-old son from a prior marriage and is still bound by an affidavit she signed for her mother in 2022. Her household is four: herself, her husband, her son and her mother. Her line is $41,250, not the $27,050 a couple would need.

A previously sponsored immigrant drops out of the count once they naturalize, die, abandon permanent residence or reach 40 quarters. If your spouse is both your spouse and someone you previously sponsored, list them once.

USCIS publishes the poverty-guideline chart for affidavits as Form I-864P. The current chart took effect March 1, 2026. Use the column that matches your situation and the table for the state or territory where you live: the 48 contiguous states, D.C., Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands share one table, while Alaska and Hawaii have their own.

The lower 100 percent column applies only to a petitioning sponsor on active duty in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps or Coast Guard (other than for training) who is sponsoring a spouse or child. It does not apply to veterans, retirees, joint sponsors or substitute sponsors, and you must attach proof of active-duty status.

Part 6 asks for two figures. Current individual annual income is what you earn now from employment, self-employment or retirement. The tax-return figure is the total income line on your federal Form 1040 for the most recent tax year, counted from the date you sign. For an affidavit signed in fall 2026, that is normally the 2025 return.

Wages, net self-employment income, pensions, alimony, child support, dividends, interest and rental income can all count when documented. Means-tested public benefits never count, and neither does income from illegal activity, even if tax was paid on it. Self-employed sponsors must include the Schedule C, D, E or F that shows the business income.

The intending immigrant’s own income can help. A spouse’s income counts wherever they currently live, provided it will continue from the same source after they become a permanent resident. Any other intending immigrant’s income counts only if they already live with you and the income will continue. Neither needs to sign Form I-864A unless their own spouse or children are immigrating with them.

Household members’ income counts if they are 18 or older, are your spouse, a dependent on your tax return, or a parent, sibling or adult child sharing your home, and they sign Form I-864A agreeing to be jointly responsible.

If household income falls short, Part 7 lets you cover the difference with assets. Take the income line for your household size, subtract your household income, and multiply the shortfall. Assets of the sponsor, any I-864A household member and the intending immigrant can be combined.

Only assets that can be converted to cash within one year without considerable hardship or loss count: savings and checking balances, CDs, stocks, bonds and mutual funds, and real estate equity. Each asset needs proof of ownership, location, date of acquisition and value, plus any liens against it.

Your home counts only at net value: a recent appraisal by a licensed appraiser minus every mortgage and lien, with proof that you own it. A car counts only if you own another working car that you are not listing.

When the petitioner cannot reach the line even with assets and household income, a joint sponsor can file a separate Form I-864. The joint sponsor must be a U.S. citizen, national or permanent resident, at least 18, domiciled in the United States, and willing to be jointly liable. They do not have to be related to anyone in the case.

A joint sponsor must qualify on their own. They meet 125 percent of the guidelines for their own household plus every immigrant they sponsor, without combining income with the petitioner or another joint sponsor. Up to two joint sponsors are allowed per family, for example when the first cannot cover every derivative. The 100 percent military rule never applies to a joint sponsor.

The USCIS initial-evidence checklist is short, but each item has a rule attached. The biggest choice is whether to submit an IRS tax return transcript or a photocopy of your return. Either is acceptable, and neither needs IRS certification unless an official asks for it.

Do not send state tax returns. Do not send originals unless asked; USCIS may destroy originals it did not request. If you were required to file a federal return and did not, file the late return first and attach the transcript or copy; living abroad does not excuse a U.S. citizen or permanent resident from filing.

Our explainer on IRS tax transcripts for Form I-864 covers which transcript type to request and how long each takes to appear.

The sponsor never files the affidavit as a stand-alone application. It travels with the immigrant’s case, and the route depends on where the immigrant will get the green card.

Can you submit a scanned or photocopied I-864? Yes. USCIS accepts a photocopied, faxed or scanned copy of an original that carries a handwritten ink signature. A typed or stamped name is never a valid signature. NVC cases are uploaded electronically through CEAC; keep the signed original in case an officer asks for it.

Adjustment applicants should give the sponsor’s I-864 and evidence to the person filing the I-485 package. Our marriage-based I-485 documents checklist shows where the affidavit sits in the full filing, and the NVC and DS-260 guide covers the consular route.

No regulation requires a cover letter, but a one-page index helps an officer or NVC reviewer find what they need and explains anything unusual, such as income from a new job, a household member’s I-864A, or assets that close a gap. Keep it factual: who the sponsor is, which forms are attached, the household size, the income figure being relied on, and a numbered list of exhibits.

If you are writing a different kind of support document, such as a personal letter for a marriage case, see our sample affidavit letter for immigration marriage. For visitor or student visas, where Form I-864 does not apply, our financial support letter guide has templates.

Signing Part 8 creates a contract under INA section 213A. Until it ends, you must keep the sponsored immigrant at an income of at least 125 percent of the poverty guidelines for their household size, and you must report every change of address to USCIS on Form I-865 within 30 days. Failing to report can bring a civil fine of $250 to $2,000, rising to $2,000 to $5,000 if you knew the immigrant was receiving means-tested benefits.

The contract is legally enforceable. Federal law lets the sponsored immigrant, the federal government, any state and other benefit-granting agencies sue the sponsor. If the immigrant receives a covered means-tested benefit, such as SNAP, Medicaid, SSI, TANF or CHIP, the agency can demand reimbursement and sue to collect it, plus collection costs and attorney fees. Agencies have up to 10 years after the last benefit was paid to bring that suit.

The deeming rules matter too. While the obligation lasts, agencies can treat your income and assets as available to the immigrant when deciding eligibility for federal means-tested programs. Emergency Medicaid, school lunch programs, immunizations, Head Start and several other programs are excluded. Our guide to public benefits and the affidavit of support explains how reimbursement claims work.