Food stamps, what do I report?

[Emmamama 2]

Hi everyone,

I am currently applying for food stamps. I am the USC, my husband is currently in the process of AOS. I know that receiving food stamps is a means tested benefit, therefore he is NOT eligible for food stamps. I currently filling out the application online, and it asks for number of people in our household. I do NOT want to say there are two (him and I) because then they will calculate this for 2 people. I JUST WANT THE FOOD STAMPS FOR ME. Should I just say the number of people in the household is 1? I don't want to have problems with the state of IL, what should I do?

THANKS!

[belinda63 2,981]

You might want to contact the local office as your spouse will not count for the household size but any income he has will count towards the households income. Not sure how to fill the forms as I don't have them.

[Villanelle 4,121]

No you must fill out the correct household size. Omitting him is a lie. Youre going to disclose he lives there and disclose his status. They will determine he is ineligible and not count him. They will also not count his income as he is ineligible. Your food stamp benefit will be based on your income only.

You cant bypass a step by saying well, I knew he was ineligible so I left him out. thats called lying. They know hes ineligible, and since they dont count him to get any food benefits, they dont count his income towards the amount you receive either.

You can call up your local welfare office and ask but I am almost 100% certain that if the person is not receiving the food benefits (because they are ineligible) then their income is not counted. It doesnt matter if they are part of the household. But you have to report everyone in your household or you are violating the program rules.

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Edited February 6, 2013 by capri

[KayDeeCee 4,892]

No you must fill out the correct household size. Omitting him is a lie. Youre going to disclose he lives there and disclose his status. They will determine he is ineligible and not count him. They will also not count his income as he is ineligible. Your food stamp benefit will be based on your income only.

You cant bypass a step by saying well, I knew he was ineligible so I left him out. thats called lying. They know hes ineligible, and since they dont count him to get any food benefits, they dont count his income towards the amount you receive either.

You can call up your local welfare office and ask but I am almost 100% certain that if the person is not receiving the food benefits (because they are ineligible) then their income is not counted. It doesnt matter if they are part of the household. But you have to report everyone in your household or you are violating the program rules.

.

I have seen people post(that have experience applying for food stamps) time and time again that the income IS counted in the household total, even if they are ineligible to actually receive any food stamp assistance, as the poster above stated. Why would you be so certain this is not the case? What you assume to be the way it is, may not be how it actually is. You should refrain from posting guesstimates/misinformation which can only confuse the situation more.

To the OP> I would go with what belinda63 said. Check with your local office and let them know your situation. They will inform you of the correct way it needs to be done for your case, where you are eligible but your husband is not. You want to make sure they mark him as ineligible.

[belinda63 2,981]

I advised the way I did because she is doing the form online so there may not be an option to list him as a household member but ineligible. I strongly recommend she contact the local office. His income will be counted as he is part of the household thus providing payment (hopefully) towards rent, utilities, food, transportation, etc. He is not eligible to be counted as part of the household size because this is part of what is used to determine the level of benefits.

[Villanelle 4,121]

I have seen people post(that have experience applying for food stamps) time and time again that the income IS counted in the household total, even if they are ineligible to actually receive any food stamp assistance, as the poster above stated. Why would you be so certain this is not the case? What you assume to be the way it is, may not be how it actually is. You should refrain from posting guesstimates/misinformation which can only confuse the situation more.

To the OP> I would go with what belinda63 said. Check with your local office and let them know your situation. They will inform you of the correct way it needs to be done for your case, where you are eligible but your husband is not. You want to make sure they mark him as ineligible.

Im not posting guestimates. I dont live in the OPs state and I know each state can have different rules but Foodstamps is a federally funded program and the rules are the same. The OP stated its just her and her spouse. So his income is not going to be counted in the household income. The only way his income would be counted in the household total (like in the other situations other posters had mentioned) would be if the family consisted of the USC spouse, the immigrant, and dependent USC children who were also applying for food stamp benefits and the immigrant was the childrens parent. The immigrant is responsible for the children and therefore their income will be counted towards the household income. If the USC children are not the immigrants children the the USC spouse has to show proof of child support from the childrens other parent to obtain food stamps or the welfare office will initiate a child support order. (the immigrant spouses income will still not be counted- they have nothing to do with the household)

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

The immigrants income counts. If it didn't, the immigrant could work and the USC could quit working and get food stamps? I don't think so. That'd be a pretty big loophole.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

Im not posting guestimates. I dont live in the OPs state and I know each state can have different rules but Foodstamps is a federally funded program and the rules are the same. The OP stated its just her and her spouse. So his income is not going to be counted in the household income. The only way his income would be counted in the household total (like in the other situations other posters had mentioned) would be if the family consisted of the USC spouse, the immigrant, and dependent USC children who were also applying for food stamp benefits and the immigrant was the childrens parent. The immigrant is responsible for the children and therefore their income will be counted towards the household income. If the USC children are not the immigrants children the the USC spouse has to show proof of child support from the childrens other parent to obtain food stamps or the welfare office will initiate a child support order. (the immigrant spouses income will still not be counted- they have nothing to do with the household)

Sorry capri but I'm with the others. The immigrant counts for income, but not for household count.

Here's a handy PDF about it: http://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/government/pdf/Non-Citizen_Guidance_063011.pdf starts at page 43. Page 52 has some scenarios.

[Villanelle 4,121]

Well I thumbed through the handout. Its a little too much for me to absorb tonight. All I know is I get foodstamps because I receive SS disability benefits. I was getting them before I was married. After I was married, I reported my husband to my household, I reported his immigration status, I reported his earnings. I did this in person to a caseworker. They punched all this in to the computer. I was fully expecting them to tell me my foodstamps were going to stop as my husband earns a significant amount of money. They told me point blank, my spouse was ineligible to get foodstamps due to his status- so sorry, I wasnt going to get any more food money- like I was there seeking more (?) and when I said, well arent you terminating me? They said no, since hes ineligible his income doesnt count either, just yours and you still qualify, and your benefit will amount stay the same as long as your income stays the same. (perhaps upon reading the complete guidelines Ill find out I qualify a different way and my household income is calculated differently? I dont know. Its a possibility.)

[Emmamama 2]

Thanks for everyone's help!

Weeks have gone by and I still have not been able to get in touch with my local office. I think I need to just keep calling and calling, starting at 6 am....

THANKS!