Immigration Policy Project

Benefits

Complex eligibility rules apply for legal immigrants and refugees under the 1996 welfare law. The one page chart and issue briefs below outline the changes and current law.

Eligibility for federal programs:an abbreviated chart outlining the eligibility of legal immigrants and refugees for the main federal categorical programs (TANF, Medicaid, SCHIP, Food Stamps and SSI).

TANF & Immigrants

America's Newcomers: Mending the Safety Net for Immigrants (Executive Summary) This report reviews the federal welfare reform debates and Congressional reconsideration of benefits for immigrants, as well as early decisions made by states in TANF, Medicaid, nutritional assistance, and naturalization programs. Finally, it examines federal and state constitutional issues related to public benefits for immigrants and some recent legal challenges.

America's Newcomers: Mending the Safety Net for Immigrants, Ann Morse, Jeremy Meadows, Kirsten Rasmussen, Sheri Steisel, 1998; 77 pages, ISBN 1-55516-707-1; Item #9378, $20.00. Copies may be ordered from NCSL's Book Order department (303-830-2054) or books@ncsl.org.

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families: A Checklist, by Ann Morse and Amanda Culp, June 15, 2001
Welfare Reform & Immigrants: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, March 18, 1998
Welfare Reform & Immigrants: State Trends, Issue Brief, October 21, 1997
Q&A on Immigrant Benefits
More information on welfare reform

Food Stamps/Nutritional Assistance

Food Stamp Reauthorization: A Guide to Program Changes for State Legislators, by Lee Posey, September 20, 2002
The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, restores Food Stamp benefits to legal immigrants who lost these benefits with the passage of the 1996 welfare reform law, reversing a federal cost shift to the states. And it provides states new flexibility to improve the Food Stamp program for low-income workers.

Food Stamp Benefits Restored, Issue Brief, May 14, 2002
Nutritional Assistance in a Post-Welfare World, by Laurie Hoogeveen, June 15, 2001
Welfare Reform & Immigrants: Nutritional Assistance, Issue Brief, January 1, 1999

SSI

Welfare Reform & Immigrants: Supplemental Security Income, Issue Brief, January 1, 1999