Other Eligibility Requirements
To be eligible for SNAP benets, households must also
meet other conditions in addition to the income and
resource requirements. For example, everyone in your
household must have, or have applied for, a Social
Security number.
You may also be eligible for SNAP benets if you are a
lawfully present noncitizen and meet other SNAP eligibility
requirements, including income and resource limits. Most
eligible noncitizens must wait 5 years before getting
SNAP benets. However, certain noncitizens do not have
to wait 5 years before getting benets. These include
some lawfully present children under age 18, people with
disabilities, refugees, and people seeking asylum. You
may also be immediately eligible for benets if you are
lawfully present and have enough work history or a military
connection. You can nd more information about whether
you can get SNAP as a noncitizen at www.fns.usda.gov/
snap/eligibility/citizen/non-citizen-policy.
If your children are lawfully present or are U.S. citizens,
they may still qualify for SNAP benets even if you are not
eligible. You can apply for your children without providing
information about your immigration status.
Applying for or receiving SNAP for yourself or on behalf of
eligible family members does not affect your immigration
status or ability to become a citizen.
How can you apply for SNAP?
Applications for SNAP benets are available at any Social
Security ofce. If you and everyone in your household are
applying for or already getting SSI payments, any Social
Security ofce will help you ll out the SNAP application
and send it to the SNAP ofce for you.
All other applicants, including those applying for or
getting only Social Security benets, must take or
send their applications to the local SNAP ofce. To
nd your local SNAP ofce or to apply online, visit:
www.fns.usda.gov/snap/state-directory. You can also
call the SNAP information line toll-free at 1-800-221-5689.
You will be required to complete an interview after you
complete your SNAP application. In most cases, you may
be interviewed by telephone. In addition to the application
and interview, you will also need to provide verication of
certain information. Some documents you can provide to
verify the information on your SNAP application include:
• Identication such as a driver’s license, state ID card,
birth certicate, work or school ID card, health insurance
card, voter registration card, or proof of alien status.
• Proof of income for each member of your household,
such as pay stubs, a statement from an employer,
current benet verication letter for payments received
from Social Security, veteran’s benets, unemployment
insurance benets, and documentation of child support
or alimony.
• Proof of how much you spend for dependent care.
• Rent receipts or proof of your mortgage payments.
• Records of your utility costs.
• Medical bills for those members of your household
who are age 60 or older, and for those who receive
disability benets, such as Social Security disability
or SSI.
After you apply, the SNAP ofce processing your
application will decide if your household qualies for
benets. You should nd out if you are eligible within
30 days. Households eligible for expedited service get
benets within 7 days. If you do not hear within 30 days
after you apply for benets, call or visit the SNAP ofce.
How much can you get?
If your household is eligible, the amount of SNAP benets
you get depends on your household size, monthly household
income, and expenses for such thing as mortgage or
rent, utilities, and childcare or elder care needed to allow
someone to work. To nd your local SNAP ofce or to apply
online, visit www.fns.usda.gov/snap/state-directory.
You can also call the SNAP information line toll-free at
1-800-221-5689. For information about other nutrition
assistance programs that may be available to you, read
Nutrition Assistance Programs (Publication No. 05-10100)
or visit www.fns.usda.gov.
Contacting Us
There are several ways to contact us including online,
by mail, by phone, and in person. If you cannot use our
online services, we can help you by phone when you call
our National toll-free 800 Number.
If you don’t have access to the internet, we offer many
automated services by telephone, 24 hours a day, 7
days a week, so you may not need to speak with a
representative. Call us toll-free at 1-800-772-1213 or at
our TTY number, 1-800-325-0778, if you’re deaf or hard
of hearing. We provide free interpreter services upon
request. For quicker access to a representative, try calling
early in the day (between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. local time)
or later in the day. We are less busy later in the week
(Wednesday to Friday) and later in the month.
Social Security Administration
Publication No. 05-10101
December 2022 (Recycle prior editions)
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Facts
Produced and published at U.S. taxpayer expense