Benefits and public charge: the complete guide

We know this question keeps people up at night. Too many families have dropped help they had every right to use, because of a rumor or an old flyer. Fear is not a plan. Facts are. Most immigrant families in California can use the help they qualify for, and public charge never touches their case. For the families it does touch, the rules got tougher in September 2026, and good advice before you act matters more than ever.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. DNLH is not a law office or a benefits office, and we cannot represent you or decide your case. Every case is different. Free legal help is listed below.

On this page

1. What is public charge?
2. Who is exempt from public charge?
3. Who does public charge apply to?
4. What counts for public charge after September 18, 2026?
5. What about benefits I used before September 18, 2026?
6. Do my children's benefits count against me?
7. Which benefits can I get with my status?
8. Can my family get CalFresh?
9. Can we get WIC and free school meals?
10. Can I get Medi-Cal or Covered California?
11. Can my family get help with housing?
12. Can I get cash aid, unemployment, disability pay or tax credits?
13. Should I stop using benefits?
14. I have a green card. Can benefits hurt me?
15. What changed in 2025 and 2026?
16. Where can I get free help in the Bay Area?
17. Questions people ask, Printables and Sources

What is public charge?

Public charge is a test in some immigration cases. It is not a benefits rule. When some people apply for a green card or a visa, an officer decides whether the person is likely to depend on the government in the future. If the officer says yes, the application can be denied.

The law tells the officer what to weigh. At a minimum, the officer must look at your:

• Age
• Health
• Family status
• Money, assets and resources
• Education and skills

In most family cases, the person who filed for you (your sponsor) must also sign a promise to support you, called an affidavit of support (Form I-864). The officer can weigh that too. Using benefits is one more thing the officer can look at, together with everything else.

Public charge does not decide who can get Medi-Cal, CalFresh or any other program. The State of California says it plainly: it is an immigration rule, not a benefits eligibility rule. Whether you qualify for a benefit is a separate question with separate rules. We cover those below.

Who is exempt from public charge?

Most immigrants already in the United States never face this test. If you are in one of these groups, public charge is not a reason to skip help you qualify for. Government agencies list these groups as outside the test:

• U.S. citizens, including your citizen children
• Green card holders, in most cases. The main exception is a long trip abroad. See I have a green card.
• People applying for citizenship (naturalization)
• DACA requests and renewals
• TPS applications
• Asylum applications
• Work permit applications
• Refugees and asylees, including when they apply for a green card
• Survivors with U visas, T visas or VAWA self petitions, when they apply for a green card
• Special Immigrant Juveniles, when they apply for a green card
• Registry applicants, and certain Cuban, Haitian, Central American, Afghan and Iraqi applicants

USCIS itself lists asylees, refugees, registry applicants, Special Immigrant Juveniles, TPS, T and U visa holders, VAWA self petitioners and certain Cuban, Haitian, Central American, Afghan and Iraqi applicants as exempt from the green card public charge test.

What to do if you are exempt: apply for what you qualify for. Keep a copy of your immigration papers so you can show your status if a legal helper asks later.

Mistake to avoid: assuming a new status protects a future case. Exempt today does not always mean exempt later. See the notice below.

Who does public charge apply to?

Mainly people applying for a green card through family or through a job. For example:

• The spouse, parent or child of a U.S. citizen
• The spouse or child of a green card holder
• The brother or sister of a U.S. citizen
• A fiancé or fiancée, or a widow or widower of a citizen
• A worker sponsored by an employer

It also applies to people seeking a visa or entry into the United States, including at a visa interview at a U.S. consulate abroad. If you are doing consular processing, ask a legal helper how the State Department applies the test, because it is a different agency from USCIS.

What to bring to a legal helper: your petition receipt (Form I-797) if you have one, the date your case was or will be filed, a list of every benefit anyone in your home uses with the date each started, and your sponsor's most recent tax return if you have it.

What happens next: for a green card case inside the U.S., USCIS reviews your Form I-485 and supporting papers. An officer may ask for more evidence or call you for an interview. The officer then weighs everything together.

What counts for public charge after September 18, 2026?

For green card applications filed on or after September 18, 2026, officers may look at almost any income based benefit you get from that date on. That is the biggest change in years.

Here is what happened. On July 20, 2026, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a DHS final rule that removed the 2022 public charge rule. That rule mostly looked at cash aid. The new final rule took effect on September 18, 2026. USCIS guidance in its Policy Manual, issued August 18, 2026, explains how officers apply it, and officers judge each case as a whole.

What can count now, for benefits you get on or after September 18, 2026:

• Any public benefit based on income or need. USCIS gives examples such as cash aid, housing help, food stamps and college financial aid.
• The State of California says this now includes Medi-Cal, CalFresh, and for some people, the financial help that lowers the cost of a Covered California plan.
• San Francisco's Human Services Agency adds WIC, school meals and housing help as examples officers may consider.

What this does not mean: using a benefit is not an automatic denial. The officer looks at your whole situation: age, health, family, income, assets, skills and your sponsor. But the USCIS Policy Manual says current or past benefit use "will almost always be highly relevant." It also says benefit use alone is not enough to deny a case. That is why advice for your own case matters so much.

Applying can count too. USCIS says officers may also weigh an application or approval for a benefit made on or after September 18, 2026, unless you show you withdrew or disenrolled (Chapter 7).

Not counted: USCIS says earned benefits such as Social Security and Medicare are not means tested, and neither is unemployment insurance (Chapter 2).

County and state programs: USCIS defines "government" as federal, state, tribal, territorial or local. It does not list emergency Medi-Cal, county health programs like ACE in San Mateo County and PCAP in Santa Clara County, or state tax credits by name. If a program is paid by government and based on income, assume it could be weighed, and ask a legal helper about your case.

Mistake to avoid: trusting an old flyer. Flyers that say "CalFresh and WIC do not count" were written for the 2022 rule. They are out of date for green card cases filed on or after September 18, 2026.

What about benefits I used before September 18, 2026?

Benefits you used before September 18, 2026 are judged the old way. Under that approach, only two kinds of benefits count:

• Cash aid for income, like CalWORKs
• Long term care in an institution, like a nursing home, paid by the government

Medi-Cal for doctor visits, CalFresh and WIC that you used before September 18, 2026 are not in those two groups.

One catch: if you started a benefit before September 18, 2026 and kept using it after that date, the time after September 18 can count. USCIS says officers will consider it unless you show you disenrolled or withdrew.

What to do: write down every benefit anyone in your home uses and the date each one started. Bring that list to a legal helper. Use the worksheet below.

Do my children's benefits count against me?

Your children's benefits are not treated as your own benefits. But officers may look at what they say about your family's money. That is what the California Health and Human Services Agency says in its public charge guide, and the USCIS Policy Manual says the same thing in more detail.

USCIS says it does not count benefits received by your relatives, including your children, as yours. Applying for a benefit for your child is not counted as your application either. But if your child, or anyone you must support, gets a benefit because your income or assets are low, the officer may weigh your low income as part of your finances.

The California Attorney General sees more risk. The state's lawsuit says the rule could let a citizen child's state health coverage count against a noncitizen parent. This is one reason California and others sued.

What this means for you:

• Your citizen children still have the right to Medi-Cal, CalFresh, WIC, school meals and public school.
• If no one in your home has a green card case now or soon, keep your children's benefits.
• If you plan to file a green card case, talk with a legal helper about your children's benefits before you apply for them or stop them.
• Do not cancel a child's health care or food out of fear alone. A sick or hungry child is a real harm. A risk to your case may be small, or may not exist at all.

Which benefits can I get with my status?

With DACA, a work permit or no papers, your family can still get real help in California. Your children can get even more. Each person in your family is checked on their own. "Work permit" in this table means a work permit from TPS or from a pending case, like an asylum application.

Every program also has its own income and other rules. "Yes" means your status does not stop you.

Green card holders can get CalFresh, though some must meet extra rules such as a waiting period. Green card holders in their first five years can still get full Medi-Cal paid for by the state. Starting in 2027, green card holders stay on the short list of people who get financial help with a Covered California plan. Refugees and asylees lost CalFresh on April 1, 2026, and may become eligible again once they get a green card. They lost federally funded Medi-Cal in October 2026, but the state covers them in full through June 30, 2027 (see Medi-Cal). Ask your county about every other program.

For more detail on each status, see Which benefits can I get in California based on my immigration status.

Can my family get CalFresh?

Your citizen children can. Many adults cannot, since April 1, 2026. CalFresh is California's food benefit. It puts money on an EBT card to buy groceries.

Since April 1, 2026, a federal law (H.R. 1) lets only these people get CalFresh:

• U.S. citizens and U.S. nationals
• Green card holders. Some must also meet other rules.
• Cuban and Haitian entrants
• People living here under a Compact of Free Association (from the Marshall Islands, Micronesia or Palau)

People with DACA, TPS or no papers cannot get CalFresh. Refugees, asylees and most parolees lost it too.

Your children can still get it. The state says parents can apply for children who are citizens or have an eligible status, whatever the parents' own status. You can apply only for your children. You do not have to apply for yourself.

How the county counts your family:

• Only the people who can get CalFresh count toward your household size.
• The county still counts most of the income of a parent who cannot get CalFresh. It divides that income among everyone in the home, then leaves out the share for each person who cannot get benefits.
• So your children may get a smaller amount than a family where everyone qualifies. It is still help.

Work rule for some adults: since June 1, 2026, most adults ages 18 to 64 who can work must work, volunteer or go to school at least 80 hours a month to keep CalFresh past three months. Adults with a child under 14 at home, and adults who cannot work because of a physical or mental health condition, do not have to meet this rule.

Adults 55 and older: the state plans to open its own food program, CFAP, to income eligible Californians 55 and older, whatever their status, starting October 1, 2027. It is not available yet, and it still needs funding from the Legislature.

How to apply: go to BenefitsCal, call your county, or visit a county office. In San Mateo County there are offices in East Palo Alto, Redwood City, San Mateo and Daly City. Call 1-800-223-8383.

Public charge and CalFresh: for green card cases filed on or after September 18, 2026, CalFresh can now count. Your child's CalFresh is not treated as yours, but officers may look at it. If anyone in your home will file a green card case soon, talk with a legal helper first. Full detail is in Food help for your family.

Can we get WIC and free school meals?

Yes. WIC and school meals are open to families whatever their status.

WIC is a food and nutrition program for people who are pregnant, have given birth or had a pregnancy loss, and for infants and children under 5. Dads, grandparents and foster parents of young children can sign up children too. California WIC's own eligibility check asks where you live, your family situation and your income. It does not ask about immigration status. If you already get Medi-Cal, CalFresh or CalWORKs, you may meet the income rule automatically.

• What to bring: ID for you and your children under 5, proof of address, proof of income, proof of pregnancy, and medical forms from your health care provider. You may be asked to bring your child.
• How to start: call 1-800-852-5770, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., or use the WIC eligibility check.

School meals: California public schools and charter schools give every student a free breakfast and a free lunch each school day, if the child wants one. There is no income test. Some schools still send home a meal form because it helps the school get funding.

Public charge and WIC or school meals: San Francisco's Human Services Agency says officers may now consider WIC and school meals in green card cases filed on or after September 18, 2026. Your child's meals and WIC are not treated as your own benefits. If you have a green card case coming, ask a legal helper. If you do not, keep using them.

Need food today? In San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, call 211, or the Second Harvest of Silicon Valley food line at 1-800-984-3663. See Food help.

Can I get Medi-Cal or Covered California?

Children, pregnant people and many adults with status can. Adults without papers who were not already enrolled cannot newly sign up for full Medi-Cal since January 1, 2026.

Anyone, whatever their status, can still apply for full Medi-Cal if they are:

• A child under 19
• Pregnant, during the pregnancy and for one year after
• Under 26 and were in foster care on their 18th birthday

Adults 19 and older without papers: since January 1, 2026, new adult applicants cannot sign up for full Medi-Cal. The state calls this the Adult Expansion Freeze. If you had full Medi-Cal by January 1, 2026, you can keep it if you renew on time. If it ends, you have three months to get it back. After that, you are treated as a new applicant. Restricted scope Medi-Cal, for emergencies, pregnancy and nursing home care, is still open to you.

Adults with DACA: yes. The state's freeze eligibility chart lists DACA, a "PRUCOL" status, as full scope Medi-Cal for adults. Apply and tell the county you have DACA.

Green card holders in their first five years: the same chart shows full scope Medi-Cal. The state pays for it.

Adults with TPS: the freeze chart lists people granted TPS, or with a pending TPS application, as restricted scope for new applicants 21 and older. If you already have full Medi-Cal, renew on time.

Adults with another pending case: ask your county worker which row of the chart fits you.

Refugees, asylees and parolees: a federal law, H.R. 1, ended federally funded Medi-Cal for these groups in October 2026. DHCS says the state covers them with full Medi-Cal through June 30, 2027, and after that with pregnancy and emergency care only. Watch for county letters. See Health care: the complete guide.

Coming in 2027: from January 1, 2027, members the state lists with "unsatisfactory immigration status" (undocumented, DACA and other PRUCOL, and green card holders in the five year wait) move from health plans to Fee for Service. From July 1, 2027, most adults 19 to 59 in that group pay a monthly premium (21 to 59 for some statuses). The amount is not set yet. State law says it will be $30 to $50 a month per person, and the governor will set the exact amount in May 2027. The state budget plan expects $50 (DHCS Budget Act Highlights; LAO, checked October 23, 2026). Adult dental covers emergencies only from that date. Full detail, plus county programs like ACE and PCAP, is in Medi-Cal for adults in 2026. More: Medi-Cal changes in 2027.

Covered California:

• DACA: no. A federal rule change in August 2025 ended Covered California for DACA recipients. You may still qualify for Medi-Cal.
• No papers: no. You can still apply to see if your children qualify for Medi-Cal.
• TPS and many other lawful statuses: many can buy a plan. Starting in 2027, only green card holders, Cuban and Haitian entrants and COFA migrants will get financial help to lower the cost. People with TPS are named among those losing that help.
• Mixed status families: list everyone on the application, whatever their status. Each person is checked on their own.

Public charge and Medi-Cal: the state says Medi-Cal can now count in green card cases filed on or after September 18, 2026. USCIS names government health coverage as an example and does not carve out emergency Medi-Cal or county programs. Ask a legal helper before you apply for or drop coverage.

Can my family get help with housing?

Your rights as a tenant do not depend on your status. Help paying rent depends on the program.

Your rights as a tenant. In California, a landlord may not:

• Ask about your immigration or citizenship status, or the status of anyone living with you
• Make you say or sign anything about your status
• Share your status with others to harass you, punish you, or push you out

This is Civil Code section 1940.3. A landlord may still check your income and your identity, and must follow federal rules for some subsidized housing. If a landlord threatens to call immigration, write down what was said and when, and call a legal clinic. See Your rights in California, whatever your status.

Public housing and Section 8 vouchers. These are federal programs with their own immigration rules, and a landlord in them must follow federal rules. On February 20, 2026, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) proposed a rule that would require proof of citizenship or eligible status for every person in a covered program, at any age. It would also make "prorated" help for mixed status families temporary, instead of lasting as long as today. Comments closed April 21, 2026. It is a proposal, not a final rule. As of October 21, 2026, we found no final rule in the Federal Register. Today's rules still apply. If your family lives in public housing or uses a Section 8 voucher, and not everyone in your home is a citizen or has an eligible status, talk with a housing legal helper before you sign anything new or move anyone out.

What to bring to a housing legal helper: your lease, every letter from your landlord or housing authority, and your most recent rent notice.

Help with rent today. In the Bay Area, call 211 (elsewhere, find your local 211). It can point you to emergency shelter, help with rent or a deposit, affordable housing, and help if you face eviction. 211 does not hand out money itself. See 211: free help finding local services.

Public charge and housing help: USCIS names housing assistance as an example of a benefit that can count in green card cases filed on or after September 18, 2026. If anyone in your home has a green card case coming, ask a legal helper before you apply for or leave a housing program. Do not give up a lease or a voucher without advice.

Can I get cash aid, unemployment, disability pay or tax credits?

Some of these are open to every worker. Others depend on your status.

CalWORKs cash aid helps families with children. To be aided, a person must be a citizen or a "qualified" noncitizen, like a green card holder. DACA and TPS are not on the federal "qualified" list. A person who does not meet the status rules is left out of the grant, but the family's income still counts. Citizen children in the home can still be aided. Santa Clara County's CalWORKs handbook shows worked examples where undocumented parents are left out and their citizen children get the grant. Ask your county how it applies to your family. CalWORKs is cash aid, so it counts for public charge under both the old and new approach, for the person who gets it.

Unemployment needs permission to work: you must have had legal permission to work when you earned the wages (EDD). You prove it again each week you claim. With DACA or another valid work permit, you can apply. Workers without papers cannot get unemployment.

Disability Insurance and Paid Family Leave are open to workers whatever their status. You can apply without a Social Security number by using the paper form. The state says these will not affect your path to citizenship. See Disability or Paid Family Leave pay without papers.

Tax credits: with an ITIN, you can claim the CalEITC and the Young Child Tax Credit on your California return. A child needs a Social Security number or an ITIN for the Young Child Tax Credit. USCIS does not name state tax credits in its public charge guidance on the new rule. If anyone in your home has a green card case coming, ask a legal helper before you claim them. See CalEITC and Young Child Tax Credit with an ITIN.

College aid: students who meet AB 540 can get state aid like Cal Grants through the California Dream Act Application. USCIS names college financial aid as an example of a benefit that can count in green card cases filed on or after September 18, 2026. Students with a green card case coming should ask a legal helper. See Paying for college in California.

Should I stop using benefits?

Not before you get advice for your own case. Stopping can hurt your family's health and may not help your case at all. The State of California's advice is simple: before you take any action, learn whether the rule applies to you, and get trusted advice before you change health care, food aid or other support.

Use these three steps.

Step 1. Does anyone in your home have a green card or visa case now or soon?

• No: public charge is very likely not a reason to stop anything. Keep the help you qualify for.
• Yes, and they are in an exempt group (refugee, asylee, U or T visa, VAWA, Special Immigrant Juvenile and others listed above): public charge does not apply to that case.
• Yes, through family or a job: go to step 2.

Step 2. When was or will the green card case be filed?

• Before September 18, 2026: it is judged under the older rules. Ask your lawyer what that means for you.
• On or after September 18, 2026: benefits that person gets from September 18 on can count. Go to step 3.

Step 3. See a trusted legal helper before you apply for, renew or cancel any benefit. Bring the questions list and your benefits worksheet. Ask about each benefit, for each person.

Mistakes to avoid:

• Canceling a child's Medi-Cal or CalFresh because of a rumor.
• Paying a notario or "immigration consultant" for advice. A notario is not a lawyer, and immigration consultants may not give legal advice. See Warning signs of an immigration scam.
• Skipping emergency care. If you have an emergency, get care.
• Guessing on a benefits form or an immigration form. Always tell the truth, and ask for help with any question you do not understand.

I have a green card. Can benefits hurt me?

In most cases, no. Public charge does not apply to current green card holders, and it is not part of the citizenship application.

There is one big exception. If you are outside the United States for more than 180 days in a row, the law can treat you like a new applicant when you come back. Then public charge can apply. Planning a long trip? Talk with a legal helper first. See Should green card holders travel abroad?

Thinking about citizenship? Public charge is not part of the citizenship application. See Citizenship: the complete guide.

Sponsoring a relative? If you sign Form I-864 for a family member, you promise to support them. Ask a legal helper what that promise means for you before you sign.

What changed in 2025 and 2026?

Only confirmed changes are listed here.

• August 2025: a federal rule change ended Covered California for DACA recipients. They may still qualify for Medi-Cal.
• December 2025: a federal court ruling allowed limited Medi-Cal information about people who are not lawfully present to be shared with immigration enforcement. The state says the lawsuit is still going on.
• January 1, 2026: adults 19 and older without satisfactory immigration status can no longer newly enroll in full Medi-Cal. Current members can keep it if they renew on time.
• April 1, 2026: H.R. 1 narrowed CalFresh to citizens, U.S. nationals, green card holders, Cuban and Haitian entrants and COFA residents. Refugees, asylees, most parolees, DACA, TPS and people without papers lost or cannot get CalFresh.
• May 7, 2026: USCIS proposed adding questions about benefit use to its change of address form (Form AR-11). Comments closed July 6, 2026. We found no final version as of October 19, 2026.
• June 1, 2026: CalFresh work rules expanded for most adults 18 to 64.
• July 20, 2026: DHS published a final rule removing the 2022 public charge rule, effective September 18, 2026.
• August 18, 2026: USCIS issued new Policy Manual guidance on public charge, effective September 18, 2026.
• September 14, 2026: California, other states, and cities and counties including San Francisco and Santa Clara County sued to stop the rule.
• September 18, 2026: the new public charge final rule took effect. We found no court order stopping it as of October 21, 2026.
• October 2026: H.R. 1 ended federally funded Medi-Cal for refugees, asylees, parolees and some others. California covers them in full through June 30, 2027.

Coming next: from January 1, 2027, Medi-Cal members without satisfactory status (including DACA and green card holders in the five year wait) move to Fee for Service Medi-Cal. From July 1, 2027, most adults 19 to 59 in that group pay a monthly premium for full Medi-Cal, adult dental becomes emergency only, and state full coverage for refugees, asylees and parolees narrows to pregnancy and emergency care. HUD's mixed status housing rule is still only a proposal. Starting in 2027, people with TPS and many other lawful statuses lose financial help for Covered California plans. CFAP for adults 55 and older is planned for October 1, 2027.

Rules here are changing. Before you apply for a benefit or file for a green card, check the USCIS public charge page and talk to a free legal helper listed below.

Where can I get free help in the Bay Area?

These are free or low cost legal services and public offices. Contact them to confirm hours, languages and openings. Being listed here is not a referral or a promise of service.

Legal help with public charge and immigration questions

• Bay Area Legal Aid: free legal advice line for people with low incomes, 1-800-551-5554. baylegal.org/get-help
• Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto (CLSEPA): immigration help for low income residents of San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. 650-326-6440, 1861 Bay Road, East Palo Alto. Walk ins Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. clsepa.org
• Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County: immigration legal services for low to moderate income county residents, (408) 468-0100. A $50 consultation fee applies.
• State funded immigration legal services: the California Department of Social Services lists nonprofits by region. cdss.ca.gov/immigrationcontractors
• More options: Free legal help in the Bay Area and How to find a lawyer you can trust

Help applying for benefits

• San Mateo County Human Services Agency: Medi-Cal, CalFresh and CalWORKs. 1-800-223-8383, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Service center at 2415 University Avenue, East Palo Alto.
• Santa Clara County Benefits Assistance Center: (408) 758-3800
• CalFresh Benefits Helpline (state): 1-877-847-3663
• California WIC: 1-800-852-5770, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Ravenswood Family Health Center, East Palo Alto: help signing up for health coverage, 650-330-7416
• Second Harvest of Silicon Valley: free food and CalFresh help, 1-800-984-3663
• 211 (San Mateo and Santa Clara counties): dial 211 or text your zip code to 898211, any time, for food, housing and other local help

Questions people ask

Will using Medi-Cal or CalFresh hurt my chances of becoming a citizen? No. Public charge is not part of the citizenship application. See I have a green card.

Does public charge apply to my DACA renewal? No. DACA requests and renewals are not tested. A future green card case could be. See Who is exempt.

My children were born here. Should I stop their Medi-Cal? Not out of fear. Their benefits are not treated as yours, though officers may look at them in a parent's green card case. If you have a green card case coming, ask a legal helper first. See Do my children's benefits count against me?

I used CalFresh last year. Is that a problem for my green card case now? Benefits used before September 18, 2026 are judged the old way, which counts only cash aid and long term care paid by the government. CalFresh you used before that date is not in those groups. Time after September 18 can count if you kept using it.

Does WIC count now? It can, for green card cases filed on or after September 18, 2026, according to San Francisco's Human Services Agency. If no one in your home has such a case, WIC is safe to keep. See WIC.

Does emergency Medi-Cal count? USCIS does not name it. Its guidance counts government health coverage based on income, so it could be weighed in a green card case filed on or after September 18, 2026. If you have an emergency, get care, then ask a legal helper.

Do free school meals count? They can be considered in green card cases filed on or after September 18, 2026, according to San Francisco's Human Services Agency. Every California public school student can get them, and they are not treated as the parent's benefit.

I am a refugee or asylee. Can benefits hurt my green card case? No. Refugees and asylees are exempt from public charge, including when they apply for a green card. But many lost CalFresh on April 1, 2026. Ask your county what you can get.

I have a U visa or a VAWA case. Should I worry? Public charge does not apply when U visa holders and VAWA self petitioners apply for a green card. See Help for survivors.

Is the new rule final? I heard states sued. It is in effect. California and others sued on September 14, 2026. We found no court order stopping it as of October 21, 2026.

Will my county tell immigration that I applied for benefits? California's guide says public charge is an immigration rule, not a benefits rule. For Medi-Cal, the state says a December 2025 court ruling allows limited data about people who are not lawfully present to be shared with immigration enforcement. Ask a legal helper about your own situation before you decide.

Can I get CalFresh with DACA? No, not since April 1, 2026. Your citizen children can. See CalFresh.

Can my landlord ask about my status? No. California Civil Code section 1940.3 says a landlord may not ask about your status or the status of anyone living with you. See Housing.

A notario says he can fix my public charge problem. Should I pay? No. A notario is not a lawyer. See Warning signs of an immigration scam and Notario or immigration consultant cheated me.

Where can I read the short version? See Will using benefits like CalFresh hurt my immigration case?

Questions to bring to a legal helper

Family benefits worksheet

You are not a burden for feeding your children or seeing a doctor. Get good advice, then make the choice that keeps your family strong.