[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 173 (Friday, September 8, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62103-62104]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-19375]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

[OMB Control Number 1615-0075]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Extension, Without 
Change, of a Currently Approved Collection: I-864, Affidavit of Support 
Under Section 213A of the INA; I-864A, Contract Between Sponsor and 
Household Member; I-864EZ, Affidavit of Support Under Section 213A of 
the INA; I-864W, Request for Exemption for Intending Immigrant's 
Affidavit of Support

AGENCY: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of 
Homeland Security.

ACTION: 30-Day notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration Services (USCIS) will be submitting the following 
information collection request to the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) for review and clearance in accordance with the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995. The purpose of this notice is to allow an 
additional 30 days for public comments.

DATES: Comments are encouraged and will be accepted until October 10, 
2023.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and/or suggestions regarding the item(s) 
contained in this notice, especially regarding the estimated public 
burden and associated response time, must be submitted via the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal website at https://www.regulations.gov under e-
Docket ID number USCIS-2007-0029. All submissions received must include 
the OMB Control Number 1615-0075 in the body of the letter, the agency 
name and Docket ID USCIS-2007-0029.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: USCIS, Office of Policy and Strategy, 
Regulatory Coordination Division, Samantha Deshommes, Chief, telephone 
number (240) 721-3000 (This is not a toll-free number; comments are not 
accepted via telephone message.). Please note contact information 
provided here is solely for questions regarding this

[[Page 62104]]

notice. It is not for individual case status inquiries. Applicants 
seeking information about the status of their individual cases can 
check Case Status Online, available at the USCIS website at https://www.uscis.gov, or call the USCIS Contact Center at 800-375-5283 (TTY 
800-767-1833).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Comments

    The information collection notice was previously published in the 
Federal Register on June 29, 2023, at 88 FR 42094, allowing for a 60-
day public comment period. USCIS did not receive any comments in 
connection with the 60-day notice.
    You may access the information collection instrument with 
instructions, or additional information by visiting the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal site at: https://www.regulations.gov and enter 
USCIS-2007-0029 in the search box. The comments submitted to USCIS via 
this method are visible to the Office of Management and Budget and 
comply with the requirements of 5 CFR 1320.12(c). All submissions will 
be posted, without change, to the Federal eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov, and will include any personal information you 
provide. Therefore, submitting this information makes it public. You 
may wish to consider limiting the amount of personal information that 
you provide in any voluntary submission you make to DHS. DHS may 
withhold information provided in comments from public viewing that it 
determines may impact the privacy of an individual or is offensive. For 
additional information, please read the Privacy Act notice that is 
available via the link in the footer of https://www.regulations.gov.
    Written comments and suggestions from the public and affected 
agencies should address one or more of the following four points:
    (1) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility;
    (2) Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of 
the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used;
    (3) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to 
be collected; and
    (4) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those 
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic 
submission of responses.

Overview of This Information Collection

    (1) Type of Information Collection Request: Extension, Without 
Change, of a Currently Approved Collection.
    (2) Title of the Form/Collection: I-864, Affidavit of Support Under 
Section 213A of the INA; I-864A, Contract Between Sponsor and Household 
Member; I-864EZ, Affidavit of Support Under Section 213A of the INA; I-
864W, Request for Exemption for Intending Immigrant's Affidavit of 
Support.
    (3) Agency form number, if any, and the applicable component of the 
DHS sponsoring the collection: I-864; I-864A; I-864EZ; I-864W; USCIS.
    (4) Affected public who will be asked or required to respond, as 
well as a brief abstract: Primary: Individuals or households. USCIS 
uses the data collected on Form I-864 to determine whether the sponsor 
has the ability to support the sponsored immigrant under section 213A 
of the Immigration and Nationality Act. This form standardizes 
evaluation of a sponsor's ability to support the sponsored immigrant 
and ensures that basic information required to assess eligibility is 
provided by sponsors.
    Form I-864A is a contract between the sponsor and the sponsor's 
household members. It is only required if the sponsor used income of 
their household members to reach the required 125 percent of the 
Federal poverty guidelines. The contract holds these household members 
jointly and severally liable for the support of the sponsored 
immigrant. The information collection required on Form I-864A is 
necessary for public benefit agencies to enforce the Affidavit of 
Support in the event the sponsor used income of their household members 
to reach the required income level and the public benefit agencies are 
requesting reimbursement from the sponsor.
    USCIS uses Form I-864EZ in exactly the same way as Form I-864; 
however, USCIS collects less information from the sponsors as less 
information is needed from those who qualify in order to make a 
thorough adjudication.
    USCIS uses Form I-864W to determine whether the intending immigrant 
meets the criteria for exemption from section 213A requirements. This 
form collects the immigrant's basic information, such as name and 
address, the reason for the exemption, and accompanying documentation 
in support of the immigrant's claim that they are not subject to 
section 213.
    (5) An estimate of the total number of respondents and the amount 
of time estimated for an average respondent to respond: The estimated 
total number of respondents for the information collection Form I-864 
is 453,345 and the estimated hour burden per response is 6 hours; the 
estimated total number of respondents for the information collection 
Form I-864A is 215,800 and the estimated hour burden per response is 
1.75 hours; the estimated total number of respondents for the 
information collection Form I-864EZ is 100,000 and the estimated hour 
burden per response is 2.5 hours; the estimated total number of 
respondents for the information collection Form I-864W is 98,119 and 
the estimated hour burden per response is 1 hour.
    (6) An estimate of the total public burden (in hours) associated 
with the collection: The total estimated annual hour burden associated 
with this collection is 3,445,839 hours.
    (7) An estimate of the total public burden (in cost) associated 
with the collection: The estimated total annual cost burden associated 
with this collection of information is $159,608,680.

    Dated: September 1, 2023.
Samantha L. Deshommes,
Chief, Regulatory Coordination Division, Office of Policy and Strategy, 
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of Homeland 
Security.
[FR Doc. 2023-19375 Filed 9-7-23; 8:45 am]
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