Unauthorized Immigrants’ Eligibility for Federal and State Benefits: Overview and Resources

Unauthorized Immigrants’ Eligibility for

Federal and State Benefits: Overview and

Resources

November 29, 2022

Congressional Research Service

https://crsreports.congress.gov

R47318

Unauthorized Immigrants’ Eligibility for Federal and State Benefits

Contents

Title IV of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996

(PRWORA) .................................................................................................................................. 2

Federal Public Benefits ............................................................................................................. 2

PRWORA Exceptions ......................................................................................................... 3

State Public Benefits ................................................................................................................. 4

Congressional Considerations ......................................................................................................... 5

CRS Resources ................................................................................................................................ 5

Noncitizen Eligibility for Federal Public Benefits and Services ............................................... 6

Noncitizen Eligibility for COVID-19-Related Benefits and Services ...................................... 6

Legal Analysis of PRWORA ..................................................................................................... 6

Public Charge ............................................................................................................................ 6

Appendixes

Appendix. Qualified Aliens ............................................................................................................. 7

Contacts

Author Information.......................................................................................................................... 9

Unauthorized Immigrants’ Eligibility for Federal and State Benefits: Overview and

Resources

O

f the approximately 45.3 million foreign-born people residing in the United States,1 about

one-quarter (approximately 11 million individuals2) are estimated to be unauthorized

noncitizens, sometimes referred to as illegal aliens or undocumented immigrants.

Some estimates suggest that a relatively large proportion of unauthorized immigrants living in the

United States—estimates range from 58% to 62%—had lived in the country for at least a decade,

as of 2019. Approximately 22%-23% are estimated to have lived in the United States for 20 years

or more, 16%-17% for 5 to 9 years, and 21%-25% for fewer than 5 years.3 Given the duration

with which they are estimated to have resided in the country and the circumstances that led them

to migrate to the United States, the degree to which unauthorized noncitizens should be accorded

certain rights and privileges because of their residence in the United States has long been the

subject of congressional interest.

Prior to 1996, there was no uniform rule governing which categories of noncitizens were eligible

for which government-provided benefits and services, and no single statute governed related

requirements. Noncitizen eligibility requirements, if any, were set forth in the laws and

regulations governing the individual federal assistance programs.

Title IV of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996

(PRWORA, P.L. 104-193) established comprehensive restrictions on the eligibility of noncitizens

for federal public benefits (described below).4 These restrictions apply to the majority of nonnaturalized (i.e., non-U.S. citizen) foreign-born persons,5 including lawful permanent residents

1 U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, S0501 Selected Characteristics of Native and Foreign-Born

Populations, 2021, at https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=S0501.

2 There are no direct measures of the unauthorized population residing in the United States. Nevertheless, researchers in

academic settings, nongovernmental research organizations, and federal agencies have developed estimates of the

unauthorized population using available survey data. Recent estimates from authoritative sources within the last five

years vary, but they generally place the unauthorized population between approximately 10 million and 11 million

individuals. Steven A. Camarota and Karen Zeigler, “Estimating the Illegal Immigrant Population Using the Current

Population Survey,” Center for Immigration Studies, March 29, 2022; Center for Migration Studies New York,

“Estimates of Undocumented and Eligible-to-Naturalize Populations by State,” 2021; Julia Heinzel, Rebecca Heller,

and Natalie Tawil, “Estimating the Legal Status of Foreign-Born People,” Congressional Budget Office, Working

Paper 2021-02, March 2021; Migration Policy Institute, “Profile of the Unauthorized Population: United States,”

accessed May 16, 2022; Mark Hugo Lopez, Jeffrey S. Passel, and D'Vera Cohn, “Key Facts about the Changing U.S.

Unauthorized Immigrant Population,” Pew Research Center, April 13, 2021; and Bryan Baker, “Estimates of the

Unauthorized Immigrant Population Residing in the United States: January 2015-January 2018,” U.S. Department of

Homeland Security, January 2021 For more information, see the “How many unauthorized immigrants live in the

United States?” section of CRS Report R47218, Unauthorized Immigrants: Frequently Asked Questions.

3 Center for Migration Studies New York, “Estimates of Undocumented and Eligible-to-Naturalize Populations by

State,” 2021; and Migration Policy Institute, “Profile of the Unauthorized Population: United States,” accessed May 16,

2022.

4 For more information, see CRS Report R46510, PRWORA’s Restrictions on Noncitizen Eligibility for Federal Public

Benefits: Legal Issues; and CRS Legal Sidebar LSB10526, PRWORA and the CARES Act: What’s the Prospective

Power of a “Notwithstanding” Clause?.

5 For more information, see CRS In Focus IF11806, Citizenship and Immigration Statuses of the U.S. Foreign-Born

Population.

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(also known as green card holders),6 asylees and refugees,7 nonimmigrants,8 and unauthorized

immigrants.9 However, the restrictions vary based on immigration status. This report provides an

overview of unauthorized immigrants’ eligibility for federal and state public benefits, as outlined

by PRWORA. It concludes with issues for congressional consideration as well as a selection of

CRS reports and resources related to this topic.

Title IV of the Personal Responsibility and Work

Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA)

Title IV of PRWORA was designed to create a “national policy with respect to welfare and

immigration.”10 Enacted on August 22, 1996, PRWORA amended immigration law to establish an

overarching set of noncitizen eligibility requirements for most federal public benefits. Subsequent

amendments from 1996 through 1998 modified PRWORA’s requirements to form the general

framework that applies today.11 While PRWORA created blanket noncitizen eligibility

requirements (see the Appendix), noncitizen eligibility is not uniform across federal public

benefit programs because PRWORA interacts with other laws, regulations, and guidance that

govern each individual program.

Federal Public Benefits

Under PRWORA, unauthorized noncitizens are not qualified aliens (see the Appendix) and thus

are not eligible for most federal benefits. PRWORA defines federal public benefits as:

(A) any grant, contract, loan, professional license, or commercial license provided by an

agency of the United States or by appropriated funds of the United States; and

(B) any retirement, welfare, health, disability, public or assisted housing, postsecondary

education, food assistance, unemployment benefit, or any other similar benefit for which

payments or assistance are provided to an individual, household, or family eligibility unit

by an agency of the United States or by appropriated funds of the United States.12

6 Lawful permanent residents are foreign nationals permitted to live in the United States permanently. For more

information, see CRS Report R42866, Permanent Legal Immigration to the United States: Policy Overview.

7 Asylees and refugees are foreign nationals fleeing their countries because of persecution, or a well-founded fear of

persecution, on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. For

more information, see CRS Report R45539, Immigration: U.S. Asylum Policy and CRS Report RL31269, Refugee

Admissions and Resettlement Policy.

8 Nonimmigrants are foreign nationals admitted to stay in the United States on a temporary basis and for a specific

purpose (e.g., tourists, students, diplomats, temporary workers). For more information, see CRS Report R45040,

Immigration: Nonimmigrant (Temporary) Admissions to the United States.

9 Unauthorized immigrants are foreign nationals who enter without inspection, enter with fraudulent documents, or

enter legally but overstay the terms of their temporary stay. For more information, see CRS Report R47218,

Unauthorized Immigrants: Frequently Asked Questions.

10 8 U.S.C. §1601.

11 These include Title V of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA; P.L.

104-208, Division C), Title V of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (BBA 97; P.L. 105-33), and the Noncitizen Benefit

Clarification and Other Technical Amendments Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-306). For more information, see CRS Legal

Sidebar LSB10526, PRWORA and the CARES Act: What’s the Prospective Power of a “Notwithstanding” Clause?.

12 8 U.S.C. §1611(c).

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The federal public benefits that meet this definition includes programs such as non-emergency

Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP),13 Supplemental Security

Income (SSI),14 Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF),15 and most housing assistance

programs,16 among many others. Unauthorized noncitizens are also ineligible for Federal Pell

Grants for student financial aid as well as Affordable Care Act (ACA) healthcare subsidies, and

they may not purchase unsubsidized healthcare on ACA exchanges. Additionally, PRWORA

prevents unauthorized noncitizens from receiving the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) by

requiring that the Social Security numbers of recipients (and spouses) be valid for employment in

the United States.17

PRWORA Exceptions

PRWORA includes specified exceptions to its general ineligibility rule, which allow unauthorized

noncitizens to receive some specific types of federal benefits, including the following:











treatment under Medicaid for emergency medical conditions (other than those

related to an organ transplant);

short-term, in-kind emergency disaster relief;

immunizations against immunizable diseases and testing for and treatment of

symptoms of communicable diseases;

services or assistance (such as soup kitchens, crisis counseling and intervention,

and short-term shelters) designated by the Attorney General as (1) delivering inkind services at the community level, (2) providing assistance without individual

determinations of each recipient’s needs, and (3) being necessary for the

protection of life and safety;18 and

programs for housing or community development assistance or financial

assistance administered by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development,

programs under Title V of the Housing Act of 1949, and assistance under Section

13 SNAP provides benefits to eligible low-income households on an electronic benefit transfer card; benefits can then

be exchanged for foods at authorized retailers. For more information on the program, see CRS Report R42505,

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP): A Primer on Eligibility and Benefits. For more information on

noncitizen eligibility for SNAP, see U.S. Department of Agriculture, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program

Guidance on Non-Citizen Eligibility, June 2011, at https://fns-prod.azureedge.us/sites/default/files/resource-files/NonCitizen%20Guidance_6-30-2011.pdf.

14 SSI is a federal assistance program that provides monthly cash payments to aged, blind, or disabled individuals who

have limited income and resources (i.e., assets). For more information on the program, see CRS In Focus IF10482,

Supplemental Security Income (SSI). For more information on noncitizen eligibility for SSI, see CRS Report R46697,

Noncitizen Eligibility for Supplemental Security Income (SSI).

15 TANF block grants to states fund a wide range of benefits and services for low-income families with children (e.g.,

work and training programs, child care, pre-kindergarten programs). For more information on the program, see CRS In

Focus IF10036, The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Block Grant. For more information on

noncitizen eligibility for TANF, see CRS Report RL33809, Noncitizen Eligibility for Federal Public Assistance: Policy

Overview.

16 For more information on federal housing programs, see CRS Report RL34591, Overview of Federal Housing

Assistance Programs and Policy. For more information on noncitizen eligibility for federal housing programs, see CRS

Report R46462, Noncitizen Eligibility for Federal Housing Programs.

17 For more information, see CRS Report R43840, Federal Income Taxes and Noncitizens: Frequently Asked

Questions.

18 For more information, see Department of Justice, “Final Specification of Community Programs Necessary for

Protection of Life or Safety Under Welfare Reform Legislation,” 66 Federal Register 3613, January 16, 2001.

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306C of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act, to the extent that the

noncitizen was receiving this assistance on PRWORA’s date of enactment.19

Additionally, PRWORA states that individuals who are eligible for public education benefits

under state and local law shall remain eligible to receive benefits under the National School

Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program.20 Beyond these nutrition programs, Section 742

of the act neither prohibits a state from providing nor requires a state to provide food assistance to

unauthorized immigrants through certain laws. This applies to programs such as the Child and

Adult Care Food Program; the Summer Food Service Program; the Special Supplemental

Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC); the Emergency Food Assistance

Program; the Commodity Supplemental Food Program; and the Food Distribution Program on

Indian Reservations.

State Public Benefits

PRWORA bars unauthorized noncitizens from receiving most state and locally funded benefits.21

These restrictions apply to state and local benefits that are partially funded by the federal

government, such as SNAP and Medicaid. Just as PRWORA’s restrictions on state benefits

parallel the restrictions on federal benefits, the exceptions to the restrictions are also similar,

including the following:









treatment for emergency conditions (other than those related to an organ

transplant);

short-term, in-kind emergency disaster relief;

immunization against immunizable diseases and testing for and treatment of

symptoms of communicable diseases; and

services or assistance (such as soup kitchens, crisis counseling and intervention,

and short-term shelters) designated by the Attorney General as (1) delivering inkind services at the community level, (2) providing assistance without individual

determinations of each recipient’s needs, and (3) being necessary for the

protection of life and safety.22

However, PRWORA provides each state the authority to affirmatively make unauthorized

noncitizens eligible for any benefits paid with state or local funds.23 A number of states have

enacted such measures. For example, California expanded full-scope Medi-Cal coverage (the

state’s Medicaid program) to unauthorized immigrants aged 19-25 and over 50,24 and the

California Student Aid Commission offers financial aid opportunities to unauthorized

19 8 U.S.C. §1611(b).

20 PRWORA does not address a state’s obligation to grant free public education to children who are unauthorized

immigrants under the Supreme Court’s decision in Plyler v. Doe, which determined that states may not deny children a

free public education because of their immigration status.

21 8 U.S.C. §1621.

22 For more information, see Department of Justice, “Final Specification of Community Programs Necessary for

Protection of Life or Safety Under Welfare Reform Legislation,” 66 Federal Register 3613, January 16, 2001.

23 8 U.S.C. §1621(d).

24 California Department of Healthcare Services, “Older Adult Expansion,” at https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/services/medical/eligibility/Pages/OlderAdultExpansion.aspx#:~:text=

Basic%20Information%E2%80%8B%E2%80%8B,income%20limits%2C%20will%20still%20apply.

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immigrants.25 In New York, unauthorized individuals who are working are eligible for Healthy

NY, a low-cost health insurance.26 Illinois provides comprehensive health insurance to children

under 18 regardless of immigration status if their family meets the income requirements.27

According to the National Conference of State Legislators, 19 states allow in-state tuition rates

for unauthorized students.28

Congressional Considerations

If policymakers are interested in amending (expanding or restricting) the extent to which

unauthorized noncitizens may be eligible for certain public benefits, they may look to changes in

PRWORA’s explicit prohibitions or exceptions. For example, they could alter the list of qualified

aliens (see the Appendix) or the exceptions outlined above (see “PRWORA Exceptions”).

As previously mentioned, PRWORA interacts with other laws. Agencies often must interpret how

PRWORA applies to specific programs.29 Sometimes agencies issue guidance, but sometimes

they are silent.30 Occasionally there are lawsuits and the applicability of PRWORA is determined

by the courts.31 Congress could perform oversight to see how executive branch agencies are

interpreting PRWORA and applying it to their programs.

CRS Resources

CRS has a number of reports on noncitizens’, including unauthorized immigrants’, eligibility for

federal public benefits (and related topics).

25 California Student Aid Commission, “Undocumented/Dreamer Students,” at https://www.csac.ca.gov/

undocumented-dreamer-students.

26 Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum and the New York Immigration Coalition, “Guide to Public Benefits for

Immigrants,” November 2008, at https://www.nyc.gov/html/records/pdf/govpub/moved/pubadvocate/

PA002ImmigrantGuidewebv6.pdf.

27 Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services, “About All Kids,” at https://www2.illinois.gov/hfs/

MedicalPrograms/AllKids/Pages/about.aspx.

28 These states are Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Minnesota,

Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, Texas, Utah, and Washington.

National Conference of State Legislators, “Undocumented Student Tuition: Overview,” at https://www.ncsl.org/

research/education/undocumented-student-tuition-overview.aspx.

29 Where these pre-existing eligibility rules differ from PRWORA, uncertainty may result about which rules govern.

Similarly, when Congress creates new benefit programs without mentioning PRWORA or establishing clear rules for

noncitizen eligibility, confusion can arise as to whether the PRWORA restrictions apply. For more information, see

CRS Report R46510, PRWORA’s Restrictions on Noncitizen Eligibility for Federal Public Benefits: Legal Issues.

30 See, for example, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Agriculture addressing

regulation of noncitizen eligibility for certain federal housing programs. The statutory restrictions on noncitizen

eligibility for federal housing programs included in PRWORA, Section 214 of the Housing and Community

Development Act of 1980 (P.L. 96-399, §214, 94 Stat. 1637, codified at 42 U.S.C. §1436a.), and other laws, require

federal agencies to issue regulations and guidance to interpret and apply the provisions to specific programs. That

implementation process has taken many years in some cases, and never begun in others. For more information, see

CRS Report R46462, Noncitizen Eligibility for Federal Housing Programs.

31 See, for example, the lawsuits surrounding the Department of Education’s interpretation of how PRWORA applied to

the emergency financial aid for higher education students through the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund. For

more information, see CRS Legal Sidebar LSB10526, PRWORA and the CARES Act: What’s the Prospective Power of

a “Notwithstanding” Clause?

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Noncitizen Eligibility for Federal Public Benefits and Services



CRS Report RL33809, Noncitizen Eligibility for Federal Public Assistance:

Policy Overview;



CRS Report R46697, Noncitizen Eligibility for Supplemental Security Income

(SSI);

CRS Report R46462, Noncitizen Eligibility for Federal Housing Programs;

CRS In Focus IF11912, Noncitizen Eligibility for Medicaid and CHIP; and

CRS Report R46785, Federal Support for Reproductive Health Services:

Frequently Asked Questions.







Noncitizen Eligibility for COVID-19-Related Benefits and Services











CRS Report R46339, Unauthorized Immigrants’ Eligibility for COVID-19 Relief

Benefits: In Brief;

CRS Report R46481, COVID-19 Testing: Frequently Asked Questions;

CRS Insight IN11617, Unauthorized Immigrants’ Access to COVID-19 Vaccines;

CRS Insight IN11376, Noncitizens and Eligibility for the 2020 Recovery Rebates;

and

CRS Insight IN11579, Noncitizen Eligibility for the Second Round of Direct

Payments to Individuals.

Legal Analysis of PRWORA





CRS Report R46510, PRWORA’s Restrictions on Noncitizen Eligibility for

Federal Public Benefits: Legal Issues; and

CRS Legal Sidebar LSB10526, PRWORA and the CARES Act: What’s the

Prospective Power of a “Notwithstanding” Clause?.

Public Charge



CRS Insight IN11217, Immigration: Public Charge 2022 Final Rule.

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Appendix. Qualified Aliens

PRWORA explicitly states that aliens, unless they are qualified aliens, are ineligible for federal

public benefits. Qualified aliens include the following:

 lawful permanent residents,

 refugees,

 noncitizens paroled into the United States for at least one year,32

 noncitizens granted asylum,

 noncitizens granted withholding of removal,33

 noncitizens granted conditional entry before 1980,34

 certain abused spouses and children,35 and

 Cuban-Haitian entrants.36

Another group is considered qualified aliens, but only with respect to Medicaid:

 Citizens of the Freely Associated States residing in the U.S. states and

territories.37

32 Parolees are foreign nationals granted permission to enter or remain temporarily in the United States for urgent

humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit. Immigration parole is granted on a case-by-case basis. For more

information, see CRS Report R46570, Immigration Parole.

33 Certain foreign nationals present in the United States are granted withholding of removal based on persecution on

account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. Withholding of

removal provides protection from removal. For more information, see CRS Report R45993, Legalization Framework

Under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).

34 Refugee-like noncitizens who arrived before 1980 were granted conditional entry pursuant to the Immigration and

Nationality Act (INA), Section 203(a)(7). The INA, as originally enacted in 1952, did not contain refugee or asylum

provisions. Language on the conditional entry of refugees was added by the INA Amendments of 1965. The

conforming definition of a refugee was added by the Refugee Act of 1980. For more information, see CRS Report

R45539, Immigration: U.S. Asylum Policy.

35 Certain abused spouses and children refers to certain foreign nationals who have been abused (i.e., subject to battery

or extreme cruelty) in the United States by a spouse or other household member, foreign nationals whose children have

been abused, and children of foreign nationals who have been abused. In these cases, the foreign national must have

been approved for, or have pending, an application with a prima facie case for immigration preference as a spouse or

child or for cancellation of removal (e.g., Violence Against Women Act [VAWA] Self-Petitioners).

36 Cuban-Haitian entrants are foreign nationals admitted into the United States for humanitarian reasons. The term

Cuban-Haitian entrant is not defined in immigration law, but its usage dates back to 1980. Many of the Cubans and the

vast majority of the Haitians who arrived in South Florida during the 1980 Mariel Boatlift did not qualify for asylum

according to the individualized definition of persecution in 8 U.S.C. §§1157-1158. The Carter Administration labeled

Cubans and Haitians as “Cuban-Haitian Entrants” and used the discretionary parole authority of the Attorney General

to admit them to the United States. Subsequently, an adjustment of status provision was included in the Immigration

Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA; P.L. 99-603, §202) that enabled the Cuban-Haitian entrants who had arrived

during the Mariel Boatlift to become LPRs. While the term is not found in immigration law, Congress did define

Cuban-Haitian entrant in the context of eligibility for federal assistance in Title V of the Refugee Education Assistance

Act of 1980 (P.L. 96-422, as amended; 8 U.S.C. §1522 note). For more information, see U.S. Citizenship and

Immigration Services (USCIS), Cuban Haitian Entrant Program, at https://www.uscis.gov/archive/archive-news/cubanhaitian-entrant-program-chep.

37 Freely Associated States (FAS) migrants are citizens of the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, or Palau. They are

permitted to live in the United States indefinitely under the terms of those nations’ Compacts of Free Association with

the United States. For more information, see CRS Report RL31737, The Marshall Islands and Micronesia:

Amendments to the Compact of Free Association with the United States.

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There are other groups of noncitizens that are not qualified aliens but are nevertheless eligible for

federal public benefits (based on different laws):







certain victims of human trafficking,38

Iraqi and Afghan special immigrants,39 and

certain Afghan40 and Ukrainian41 parolees.

Generally, unauthorized immigrants are not qualified aliens, as is also the case for

nonimmigrants, individuals with Temporary Protected Status (TPS),42 recipients of Deferred

Enforced Departure (DED),43 short-term (less than one year) parolees, asylum applicants,

individuals granted Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA),44 and various other classes

of noncitizens granted temporary permission to remain in the United States.

Additional Restrictions for Certain Qualified Aliens

Although qualified aliens are eligible for federal public benefits under PRWORA, the law also

places a number of additional restrictions on qualified aliens’ eligibility for certain federal meanstested public benefits programs (FMTPBs).45 Many qualified aliens are barred from FMTPBs for

five years. In addition, many qualified aliens are subject to sponsor deeming, meaning that a

portion of the income and resources of the immigrant’s sponsor are used for the purpose of

determining whether the alien meets the financial eligibility requirement of the FMTPBs.

38 As designated in the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000 (P.L. 106-386). Although this law

did not amend PRWORA, it made certified victims of trafficking eligible for benefits and services “under any Federal

or State program” to the same extent as refugees.

39 Iraqi and Afghan special immigrants are treated like refugees for purposes of federal public benefits. The Refugee

Crisis in Iraq Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-181, as amended), and the Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2009 (P.L. 111-8,

Division F, Title IV, as amended) enabled certain Iraqi and Afghan nationals to become eligible for a special immigrant

visa (SIV) and qualify for the same federal assistance available to refugees.

40 After the elected Afghan government’s collapse and Taliban takeover in August 2021, Congress passed the

Extending Government Funding and Delivering Emergency Assistance Act (P.L. 117-43, Division C, §2502), which

provided certain Afghan parolees with benefits to the same extent as refugees until March 31, 2023, or the end of their

parole term, whichever is later. For more information, see CRS Report R46950, Afghan Eligibility for Selected Benefits

Based on Immigration Status: In Brief.

41 In response to Russia’s renewed invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Congress passed the Additional Ukraine

Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2022 (P.L. 117-128, Title IV, §401), which provided certain Ukrainian parolees with

benefits to the same extent as refugees (with the exception of the initial resettlement program [i.e., the State

Department’s Reception and Placement Program]) until the end of their parole term. For more information, see CRS

Report R47290, Ukrainian Eligibility for Selected Benefits Based on Immigration Status: In Brief.

42 TPS holders are foreign nationals who have been granted temporary relief from removal due to armed conflict,

natural disaster, or other extraordinary circumstances in their home countries that prevent their safe return. For more

information, see CRS Report RS20844, Temporary Protected Status and Deferred Enforced Departure.

43 DED recipients are foreign nationals from designated countries who have been granted a temporary, discretionary,

administrative stay of removal at the President’s discretion, usually in response to war, civil unrest, or natural disasters.

For more information, see CRS Report RS20844, Temporary Protected Status and Deferred Enforced Departure.

44 DACA recipients are unauthorized childhood arrivals who have been granted renewable two-year protection from

removal. For more information, see CRS Report R45995, Unauthorized Childhood Arrivals, DACA, and Related

Legislation.

45 FMTPBs are programs where eligibility is partially based on one’s household income. These include SSI, TANF,

SNAP, non-emergency Medicaid, and the State Child Health Insurance Program (CHIP). For more information, see

CRS Report RL33809, Noncitizen Eligibility for Federal Public Assistance: Policy Overview.

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Moreover, if the alien does receive FMTPBs, the granting agency can seek reimbursement from

the immigrant’s sponsor.46

Some categories of noncitizens are not subject to these stricter rules for FMTPBs, including

refugees, asylees, Cuban/Haitian entrants, Vietnamese-born Amerasians, and aliens granted

withholding of removal.

Author Information

Abigail F. Kolker

Analyst in Immigration Policy

Disclaimer

This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan

shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and

under the direction of Congress. Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other

than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in

connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the United States Government, are not

subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in

its entirety without permission from CRS. However, as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or

material from a third party, you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you wish to

copy or otherwise use copyrighted material.

46 For more information, see CRS Report RL33809, Noncitizen Eligibility for Federal Public Assistance: Policy

Overview.

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