USCIS Can Now Request Credit Reports From Green Card Sponsors

USCIS has given immigration officials new authority to request consumer reports on people who financially sponsor green card applicants.

The change took effect Aug. 31 with a new edition of Form I-864, Affidavit of Support. Reports of credit checks have already begun appearing on social media and immigration forums, although USCIS has not confirmed how widely it is using the new authority.

USCIS has also not announced a minimum credit score or explained what information it will consider, leaving families with questions about how consumer reports could affect sponsorship decisions.

“Meeting the income and asset requirements has historically given families a relatively clear benchmark to work toward,” said Boundless co-founder and CEO Xiao Wang. “Now USCIS has opened the door to considering information from consumer reports without telling families what standards it will use. A missed credit card payment, identity theft, or an error on someone’s credit file should not become an unpredictable barrier keeping legally married couples apart.”

What changed on Aug. 31?

USCIS published the 08/24/26 edition of Form I-864 on Aug. 31 and made it effective immediately, with no grace period.

That means:

• USCIS will accept the 08/24/26 edition if it is postmarked or electronically submitted on or after Aug. 31, 2026.
• The previous 10/17/24 edition will not be accepted if it is postmarked or electronically submitted on or after that date.
• The new form includes a privacy release allowing USCIS to request information from consumer reporting agencies.

Applicants preparing a green card filing should therefore make sure they are using the latest version of the form before submitting their application.

Is USCIS checking sponsors’ credit scores?

Possibly, but USCIS has not said that there is a minimum credit score sponsors must meet.

The agency’s announcement refers broadly to information from “consumer reporting agencies,” rather than announcing a new credit-score requirement.

That could encompass information contained in a consumer or credit report, but USCIS has not yet publicly explained what it plans to look for or what would cause concern. The agency has not said, for instance, whether it will consider late payments, debt levels, collections, bankruptcies, fraud alerts, identity theft, or other information commonly found in consumer reports, or what weight any of those factors would carry.

For now, a sponsor should not assume that a low credit score automatically makes them ineligible. There is currently no published USCIS credit-score cutoff for Form I-864 sponsorship.

What if a sponsor has a credit freeze?

This is one area where USCIS has provided clear guidance.

The agency warns that if a sponsor has placed a credit or security freeze on their consumer-report file, USCIS may not be able to access the information it needs to evaluate Form I-864.

USCIS says sponsors should respond promptly if they are asked to release a freeze in order to avoid delays.

That does not necessarily mean sponsors should proactively remove a freeze before filing. But anyone with a freeze should be prepared to act quickly if USCIS contacts them.

Sponsors may also want to review their credit reports in advance for errors, unfamiliar accounts, or evidence of identity theft, given the agency’s new authority to obtain consumer-report information.

What should green card applicants and sponsors do now?

For anyone filing Form I-864, the immediate steps are relatively straightforward: use the 08/24/26 edition of the form, make sure financial information is accurate and complete, and check whether the sponsor has a credit freeze in place.

It may also be sensible for sponsors to review their own consumer reports so they know what information USCIS could potentially see.

Until the agency provides further guidance — or enough cases are adjudicated to show how the policy is being applied — applicants should be cautious about drawing conclusions from any single credit score or credit-report item.

Boundless will continue tracking how USCIS uses the new authority and what it means for green card applicants and their sponsors.

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