Green Card Sponsor Income Calculator: do you earn enough to sponsor your relative?

Yes. For adjustment of status, the sponsor's Form I-864 goes in the same package as the immigrant's Form I-485. USCIS reviews them together, and it can deny a green card application when the Affidavit of Support is insufficient.

Low income does not end the case by itself, but you do need to fix it before USCIS makes a decision. You can add a joint sponsor who meets the requirement on their own income, add a household member's income on Form I-864A, or use assets. If none of that is in place, USCIS can refuse the green card application under INA 212(a)(4).

Not for adjustment of status. The Affidavit of Support goes in the same package as the green card application, and USCIS charges no separate fee for it. Consular cases work differently: the affidavit goes to the National Visa Center ahead of the interview, and the case has a review fee. If you prepare the case with Immiva you do not have to decide any of this: your answers tell us whether your category needs Form I-864, and if it does, we add it to your packet and prepare it alongside Form I-485.

You generally need a household income at or above 125% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines for your household size, which USCIS publishes every year on Form I-864P. The exact dollar figure depends on how many people are in your household and whether you live in Alaska, Hawaii, or anywhere else. Enter your details in the calculator above to see the current number for your situation.

Count yourself, your spouse, your dependent children, anyone else you list as a dependent on your taxes, and every relative you are sponsoring on this affidavit. If you have sponsored other immigrants before and that obligation has not ended, include them too. A larger household raises the income you need, so it pays to count accurately.

A low income does not end your case. You have three common ways to make up the difference: bring in a joint sponsor who meets the requirement on their own income and files a separate I-864, add the income of a household member who signs Form I-864A, or use significant assets such as savings or property equity. The calculator shows how big the gap is and how much in assets it would take to close it.

Yes. Assets you could convert to cash within a year, like bank balances, stocks, or the equity in a home, can fill an income gap. As a rule, the assets must be worth five times the shortfall between your income and the requirement. That multiple drops to three times when a U.S. citizen sponsors a spouse or a child. The immigrant's own qualifying assets can count as well.

It does. The Affidavit of Support is required whether your relative adjusts status inside the United States or gets their immigrant visa at a consulate abroad. For consular cases, the I-864 goes to the National Visa Center before the interview. The income line is exactly the same on both paths, which is why this calculator works for sponsors of immigrants who are still overseas.

Yes. If you are on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces and you are sponsoring your own spouse or child, you only need to meet 100% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines instead of the usual 125%. Set the active-duty question to yes in the calculator and it switches to the lower line automatically.

When the Affidavit of Support is filed together with a green card application (Form I-485) inside the United States, there is no separate USCIS fee for it. For consular processing, the National Visa Center charges a $120 Affidavit of Support review fee, paid once for the case. Neither fee can be covered by a fee waiver.

Immiva's $249 fee covers I-485 adjustment-of-status preparation, including Form I-864 when it applies. Government filing fees are separate.