2024 HHS Poverty Guidelines for Fee Waiver Request (2024)

FAQs

What is 400% of the federal poverty level for 2024? ›

For a household of 2 (such as a U.S. citizen sponsoring a spouse, individual child, or one parent), the amount has gone from $24,650 to $25,550. For a family of 8, get ready to prove $69,500 in income or assets. For even larger families, the amount goes up by $6,725 for every additional mouth to feed.

After submitting your fee waiver request, you must wait for USCIS to make a decision. The processing period varies based on the exact application or petition being filed, but in general, a decision can take several weeks to several months.

The Poverty Threshold in 2024

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services uses the Census Bureau threshold to determine who is eligible for certain government assistance programs, like SNAP (food stamps). Under their guidelines, a family of four is considered impoverished if they earn $30,000 or less per year.

Poverty thresholds and poverty guidelines are dollar amounts set by the U.S. government to indicate the least amount of income a person or family needs to meet their basic needs. People whose income falls below the specified amount are considered poor.

2024 Income Requirements for Green Card Sponsors

The most common minimum annual income required to sponsor a spouse or family member for a green card is $25,550. This assumes that the sponsor — the U.S. citizen or current green card holder — is not on active military duty and is sponsoring only one relative.

What is the average middle class income? In 2024, a large U.S. city's middle-class income averages between $52,000 and $155,000, with the median household income across all 345 cities at $77,345, making middle-class income limits fall between $51,558 and $154,590, SmartAsset noted.

Is $20000 a year low income? ›

Pew Research considers middle class to be $56,000 to $156,000 for families of three. Thus, a family of three on $20,000 is not middle-class; it's actually below the poverty level. While an individual on $20,000 a year is not below the poverty line, they are still not considered middle-class.

The Pew Research Center defines the middle class as households that earn between two-thirds and double the median U.S. household income, which was $65,000 in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.21 Using Pew's yardstick, middle income is made up of people who make between $43,350 and $130,000.7 This is a ...

If the applicant has no grounds to challenge the decision by way of Judicial Review then they must submit and pay for the relevant immigration visa application within 10 working days of receipt of the fee waiver partial grant or refusal, in order to avoid becoming an overstayer.

If the court determined you are ineligible

You have 10 days to either pay the fee or ask for a hearing to show more information to a judge. If you ask for a hearing, the judge can decide to grant you a full waiver, a partial waiver, or extra time to pay, or they may deny your request again.

This income limit, now $2,829/month, normally changes on January 1^st of each year. This monthly figure represents 300% of the federal SSI benefit amount and is usually revised upwards each year due to inflation. $2,829 is the income threshold amount for 2024.

Note: Income is family cash income. The poverty rate “including Social Security” is the official poverty rate.