← Part of Stage 2: NVC
Affidavit of support
Who counts in your household?
What income do you need?
Answer the questions below to calculate your I-864 household size and minimum income threshold. Each question mirrors the official Form I-864 instructions. Includes a joint sponsor calculator and shortfall options.
New edition and a credit check on every sponsor
USCIS accepts only the 08/24/26 edition of the I-864, I-864A and I-864EZ from 1 October 2026. Check the edition date at the foot of every page, and download a new blank form if yours is older.
Signing that edition authorizes USCIS and the State Department to obtain credit reports and scores for the sufficiency decision. It applies to every sponsor and every I-864A household member. Lift any credit freeze before signing, or be ready to lift it quickly when asked. The household size and income math below is unchanged. More: what the I-864 does and does not settle.
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Location
Where does the sponsor live?
Alaska and Hawaii use higher poverty guidelines. The contiguous 48 states, DC, Guam, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands, and other US territories all follow the same income thresholds. The sponsor's location determines which table applies, not the applicant's location.
Your I-864 summary
Review against your completed Form I-864 before submitting to NVC
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Household size breakdown
Minimum income required, 2026 I-864P guidelines (effective Mar 1, 2026)
125% FPG: most sponsors
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Annual gross income · petitioning sponsor & joint sponsors
100% FPG: active-duty military only
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Sponsoring a spouse or child · per 9 FAM 601.14-2
For households larger than 8, add $7,100 (125%) or $5,680 (100%) per additional person.
If your income falls below the threshold
I-864A
Add a household member's income. A qualifying relative (adult child, parent, or sibling) who lives with you signs Form I-864A. Their income combines with yours on your I-864. They are already counted in your household size above if you included them in Step 6.
Joint sponsor
Use a joint sponsor. A separate US citizen or LPR files their own independent I-864. They must independently meet 125% FPG for their own household size. The immigrant counts in the joint sponsor's household too. Once a joint sponsor is required, the petitioner's income is no longer assessed against the threshold; only the joint sponsor's income must qualify. Use the calculator below to check a joint sponsor's figures.
Joint sponsor household size calculator
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Joint sponsor household size
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Set options above to calculate
The intending immigrant(s) always count in a joint sponsor's household, even if the petitioner's spouse was already counted in the petitioner's own household. The joint sponsor is an independent third party. The immigrant is a new addition to their household for I-864 purposes. The joint sponsor files their own I-864 with their own tax returns and supporting documents. They do not need to live with the petitioner or the immigrant.
Assets
Bridge the gap with assets.
If income falls short, a joint sponsor is strongly preferred over relying on assets alone. The safest position is a petitioner with a W-2 salaried job meeting 125% FPG independently. A joint sponsor with a W-2 job is the next best option. Assets should be documented regardless, but should not be treated as a reliable substitute for income at this post.
The NVC document review does not bind the consular officer. Clearing NVC means the paperwork was complete, not that the finances were accepted. Cases pass NVC and still draw a 221(g) at London on exactly this ground.
Community warning: London embassy
Assets as a standalone financial basis are consistently rejected at the US Embassy London, including cases where applicants presented substantial cash savings. This is community-observed across multiple cases; it is not an official policy statement from the embassy. The consular officer retains full discretion under INA 212(a)(4) to assess public charge risk beyond what the I-864 establishes on paper.If income falls short, a joint sponsor is strongly preferred over relying on assets alone. The safest position is a petitioner with a W-2 salaried job meeting 125% FPG independently. A joint sponsor with a W-2 job is the next best option. Assets should be documented regardless, but should not be treated as a reliable substitute for income at this post.
Meeting the threshold is only the starting point
Clearing 125% FPG gets the affidavit accepted; it does not settle public charge. Consular officers are directed to look behind the figure at the sponsor's financial stability and history rather than just the latest return, the sponsor's own use of public benefits, the genuineness of the sponsor–applicant relationship, and whether the sponsor is realistically likely to make that income and those assets available to the applicant. Joint sponsors face heightened review: employment, assets and domicile may all be verified.The NVC document review does not bind the consular officer. Clearing NVC means the paperwork was complete, not that the finances were accepted. Cases pass NVC and still draw a 221(g) at London on exactly this ground.
Assets: official rules (for reference)
Net asset value must be at least 3× the shortfall between your income and 125% FPG where the intending immigrant is the spouse, or a child aged 18 or over, of a US citizen: the usual position on an IR-1/CR-1 case, and 5× in most other cases, including a US citizen’s parent or sibling, and a US citizen's child under 18 (most of whom are exempt from the I-864 anyway because they acquire citizenship on admission). (An orphan being adopted by a US citizen needs assets merely equal to the shortfall.) See 8 CFR 213a.2(c)(2)(iii). Assets must be convertible to cash within 12 months without significant hardship or loss. Eligible assets include savings, stocks, bonds, and real property (including home equity, at net value). Not eligible: primary vehicle. Retirement accounts may be counted at a discounted value to account for early-withdrawal penalties. USCIS does not specify a fixed discount, but the value must reflect what you would receive. The applicant's foreign assets may also be used, subject to the same convertibility standard and evidence that funds can be removed from the country. Do not assume a value accepted at NVC is locked in: the consular officer decides public charge on the facts at the time of the visa application (INA 212(a)(4)(A)) and can ask for current statements at the interview, so keep asset evidence up to date.
Potential exemption from I-864 requirement
40 SSA qualifying quarters: 9 FAM 601.14-3(b)(2)
If the intending immigrant can demonstrate 40 qualifying quarters of coverage under the Social Security Act (Title II), the I-864 requirement is waived entirely. Quarters worked by a parent (while the immigrant was under 18) or by a US-citizen spouse (during the marriage) can be credited toward the 40. No quarter earned after December 31, 1996 counts if the immigrant received any federal means-tested public benefit during that quarter.
To verify qualifying quarters, the immigrant can request an SSA Earnings and Benefits Statement at ssa.gov or call 1-800-772-1213. At the NVC processing stage, the applicant self-identifies by checking a box in the CEAC portal and must submit the SSA statement. The consular officer makes the final determination.
Note: 40 quarters is equivalent to 10 full years of Social Security-covered work. This exemption applies primarily to immigrants who have worked extensively in the US under prior visa categories.
Self-employment: additional evidence required
Applies to petitioning sponsor and joint sponsor
Self-employed sponsors, including sole proprietors, LLC members, independent contractors, freelancers, and gig workers: must provide additional documentation beyond a tax return. This applies whether you are the petitioning sponsor or a joint sponsor.Standard evidence typically required:
- Federal tax return (Form 1040) for the most recent tax year, with all schedules including Schedule C, Schedule F, or Schedule K-1 as applicable. Only the most recent year is required; the previous two years are strongly recommended to show the income is sustained
- IRS tax transcripts confirming filed returns
- 12 months of business bank account statements showing consistent income deposits: commonly requested by NVC, not explicitly listed in the I-864 instructions
- Evidence of business registration with state authorities (e.g. state business license, Articles of Organization, Secretary of State registration)
- A signed profit and loss statement for the current year if income has changed since the last tax return
Self-employment income is scrutinized more heavily than W-2 income because it is easier to inflate and harder for NVC or a consular officer to verify independently. Cases where self-employment is the sole income basis carry higher risk of a Request for Evidence or consular refusal. If a joint sponsor with W-2 income is available, that is a materially stronger position.
①Do not count any person more than once. If your spouse is an already-sponsored LPR, they count once in Step 2, not again under prior obligations.
②Use current annual income (what you expect to earn this calendar year). The I-864 asks for both current income and prior tax-year figures, but the income threshold test is applied against your current-year estimate.
③Self-employed sponsors: use net profit from Schedule C/F, not gross receipts. Depreciation claimed on Schedule C may be added back. See the self-employment section above for full evidence requirements.
④If poverty guidelines change between NVC submission and the interview date, a new I-864 is not automatically required: the affidavit is measured against the guidelines in effect when it was filed. That is not the same as the case being settled at NVC. The consular officer decides public charge on the facts at the interview (INA 212(a)(4)(A)) and can ask for updated income, employment and asset evidence, as NVC's own DQ notice warns.
⑤Divorce does not end an I-864 obligation. It ends only when the immigrant naturalizes, earns 40 SSA work quarters, permanently departs the US, or dies.
⑥Alaska and Hawaii sponsors: your household size calculation is the same as any other sponsor. Only the dollar threshold differs. Use the Alaska or Hawaii columns in the official I-864P.
Sources: 9 FAM 601.14 · USCIS I-864P (2026) · Form I-864 Instructions · INA §213A · 8 CFR 213a.1 · DOS NVC FAQ · HHS Federal Register Jan 15, 2026. Data current as of June 2026. Verify figures at uscis.gov before submitting.