public charge

American  

noun

1. a person who is in economic distress and is supported at government expense.

   He assured the American consul that the prospective immigrant would not become a public charge.

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Etymology

Origin of public charge

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

Here’s how much of the confusion about public charge rules arose, what the rules are now and to whom the rules apply.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 17, 2023

In 2021, her group surveyed 1,000 Americans in mixed-status immigrant families to better understand what they knew about the public charge update.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 17, 2023

You might have seen warnings that there are more than 30 electric car owners "fighting over" every public charge point.

From BBC • Jul. 24, 2023

Those who violate the public charge standard can be denied the chance to become citizens.

From Washington Times • May 17, 2023

Only, because the deed had been so manifest, a command was laid upon the father that he should make a trespass offering for his son at the public charge.

From Stories From Livy by Pinelli, Bartolomeo