Can sponsor receive SNAP food stamp?

[ehayulhwang 0]

I apologize if this is a wrong forum so please feel free to move it to the appropriate forum.

 

I entered US via K1 visa and have filed AOS back in November 2018. Right now I have EAS/AP and waiting for AOS interview. I’m just wondering if my sponsor, who is my wife, can receive SNAP food stamp without making me a public charge. We do have my mother in law as a joint sponsor since my wife isn’t making enough money while going to school. 

 

I am aware that food stamp has recently become one of the means-tested benefits for public charge so I cannot access it but my wife who is a US citizen can. However, when I looked at the SNAP application, it asks about all household members, household income and the immigration status for each member. If I am counted as a recipient of SNAP since I’m a household member and a main income provider, would I then become a public charge even though it was my US citizen wife who applied for SNAP?

 

I heard so many different things so I just wanted to get more information from others who may have any prior experience. Thank you in advance! 

[JFH 12,189]

I’ll be interested to hear what happens in this case. My husband was unemployed for a time when I arrived and he applied for food stamps. He was told that he could not receive such assistance with a GC holder wife as couples usually eat together so I would be eating the food purchased through SNAP program. He could claim Medicaid (he has several health issues) because he would be the sole recipient of the assistance. His doctor visits, his scripts, etc. 

[millefleur 5,035]

On 6/1/2019 at 7:46 PM, JFH said:

I’ll be interested to hear what happens in this case. My husband was unemployed for a time when I arrived and he applied for food stamps. He was told that he could not receive such assistance with a GC holder wife as couples usually eat together so I would be eating the food purchased through SNAP program. He could claim Medicaid (he has several health issues) because he would be the sole recipient of the assistance. His doctor visits, his scripts, etc. 

This is how I feel about SNAP when the recipient is married to a GC holder. It's very hard to prove that the GC holder would not be sharing the food with their spouse, thus receiving some element of the SNAP benefit...thus meaning that somehow the GC is using a means-tested benefit.

[JFH 12,189]

10 minutes ago, millefleur said:

This is how I feel about SNAP when the recipient is married to a GC holder. It's very hard to prove that the GC holder would not be sharing the food with their spouse, thus receiving some element of the SNAP benefit...thus meaning that somehow the GC is using a means-tested benefit.

Agree. When it was explained to us why my husband was not eligible it made sense. We don’t have “his food” and “my food”. But he has “his medication”. So it makes sense that he was eligible for assistance with medical costs but not food. 

[SusieQQQ 11,584]

From an article about how a change in interpretation of the public charge rules is leading to more denials (there is a lot of extraneous stuff about the story in the article - but this is the crux of it as relates to the question asked here) 

 

"Consular officers are also now allowed to consider past or current use of public benefits – including health and nutrition services. And that includes use by an immigrant’s family, even if they are citizens.

Under the previous version of the manual, consular officials were not permitted to consider the use of non-cash benefits.

Balbino’s children’s use of the Medicaid program for low-income households and food stamps was an issue that came up in his visa interview, along with questions about his father-in-law’s commitment to supporting him..."

 

(note the FIL makes nearly $90k a year, verified by the reporter on the affidavit of support)

 

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-immigration-visas-insight/denials-of-u-s-immigrant-visas-skyrocket-after-little-heralded-rule-change-idUSKCN1RR0UX

Edited June 12, 2019 by SusieQQQ