The affidavit of support is a critical component to family-based and some employment-based applications for permanent residence (i.e., for a Green Card). The law requires that a petitioner submit an affidavit of support along with their petition for permanent residence on behalf of the foreign national to demonstrate to the satisfaction of US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) that the petitioner’s income or assets are sufficiently above the federal poverty level. USCIS requires this affidavit to ensure that the immigrant will not come to the US as a permanent resident only to later become a public charge.

The affidavit of support serves as a contract between the petitioner sponsoring the immigrant and the US government in which the petitioner agrees that a US government entity may, under certain circumstances, recuperate from the petitioner any funds that were used to provide the public benefits provided to the immigrant. The idea behind the affidavit of support is that the petitioner, who must be a US citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR) over eighteen and residing in the US, will be financially supporting the immigrant, if necessary. This is shown by submitting recent tax filings as well as a recent job letter that show annual earnings, along with proof of citizenship or LPR status.