Current through Register 1531, September 27, 2024
A noncitizen applying for SNAP benefits and claiming an
eligible noncitizen status must verify that he or she is present in the United
States (U.S.) under one of the noncitizen statuses provided in 106 CMR
362.220(A). The status of a noncitizen must be verified at certification, at
recertification or whenever the status of the noncitizen changes or is
questionable. Verification of an eligible noncitizen status must be presented
before the determination of SNAP eligibility.
When a noncitizen applying for SNAP benefits indicates an
inability or unwillingness to provide information about, or acceptable
verification of, his or her eligible noncitizen status, that household member
shall be ineligible. In such cases the Department shall not continue efforts to
obtain documentation. Also, if a noncitizen applying for SNAP benefits
indicates an inability or unwillingness to provide, or apply for, a Social
Security Number due to immigration status he or she is ineligible. The
Department shall not continue efforts to obtain documentation. SNAP eligibility
will be determined in accordance with
106 CMR
365.520(A) for the
household members who do verify an eligible noncitizen status.
The Commissioner or designee is required to report to the
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) information about
noncitizens "known to be in the U.S. unlawfully" as defined in
106 CMR
362.240.
SNAP - Eligible Noncitizen Status. A
noncitizen's eligibility for SNAP benefits depends on the noncitizen being a
qualified noncitizen and meeting certain conditions related to the qualified
noncitizen status.
(A) A qualified
noncitizen is a person who, at the time the person applies for or receives SNAP
benefits, is in one of the following categories as determined by the USCIS:
(1) refugees admitted to the U.S. under
section 207 of the INA, including a victims of severe forms of
trafficking;
(2) asylees admitted
to the U.S. pursuant to section 208 of the INA;
(3) noncitizens whose deportation is withheld
pursuant to section 243(h) or whose removal is withheld pursuant to section
241(b)(3) of the INA;
(4)
Cuban/Haitian entrants (defined by section 501 (e) of the Refugee Education
Assistance Act of 1980);
(5)
Amerasians defined by in section 584 of the Foreign Operations, Export
Financing and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1988;
(6) noncitizens paroled as a refugee or
asylee pursuant to section 212(d)(5) of the INA for at least one
year;
(7) conditional entrants
pursuant to section 203(a)(7) of the INA;
(8) legal permanent residents; and
(9) battered noncitizens.
(B) To receive SNAP benefits the
qualified noncitizen must meet the conditions of one of the following USCIS
statuses:
(1)
Refugee. A noncitizen present in the U.S. as a refugee
under section 207 or 207(c) of the INA is an eligible noncitizen.
(2)
Asylee. A
noncitizen present in the U.S. as a refugee under section 208 of the INA is an
eligible noncitizen.
(3)
Withholding of Deportation. A noncitizen whose
deportation is being withheld under section 243(h) or whose removal is withheld
under section 241(b)(3) of the INA is an eligible noncitizen.
(4)
Cuban/Haitian
Entrant. A noncitizen who is present in the U.S. as a
Cuban/Haitian entrant (as defined in section 501(e) of the Refugee Education
Assistance Act of 1980) is an eligible noncitizen.
(5)
Amerasian. A
noncitizen from Vietnam who is present in the U.S. as an Amerasian immigrant
(as defined in section 584 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing and
Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1988) is an eligible noncitizen.
(6)
Victims of Severe Forms of
Trafficking. A noncitizen who is present in the U.S. and has been
issued a letter from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
verifying that the noncitizen is a victim of severe forms of trafficking as
defined in
106 CMR 362.240(E)
is an eligible noncitizen.
(7)
Legal Permanent
Resident. A noncitizen present in the U.S. as a legal permanent
resident is an eligible noncitizen when he or she:
(a) prior to adjustment to legal permanent
resident status, was:
1. a refugee pursuant
to section 207 of the INA, including a victim of severe forms of
trafficking;
2. an asylee pursuant
to section 208 of the INA;
3. a
noncitizen whose deportation was being withheld pursuant to section 243(h) or
241(b)(3) of the INA;
4. a
Cuban/Haitian entrant (defined by section 501(e) of the Refugee Education
Assistance Act of 1980); or
5. an
Amerasian immigrant (defined by section 584 of the Foreign Operations, Export
Financing and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1988).
(b) has resided as a qualified noncitizen in
the U.S. for five years;
(c) is
elderly, born on or before August 22, 1931, and who was lawfully residing in
the U.S. on August 22, 1996;
(d) is
a child younger than 18 years old;
(e) is disabled as defined in
106 CMR
361.210: Elderly or Disabled
Individuals;
(f) has
worked a minimum of 40 qualifying quarters pursuant to Title II of the Social
Security Act including qualifying quarters of work not covered by Title
II;
(g) can be credited with a
total of 40 qualifying quarters pursuant to Title II of the Social Security Act
as worked by a combination of:
1. the
noncitizen;
2. parent(s) of the
noncitizen while the noncitizen was younger than 18 years old, including
quarters worked before the noncitizen was born or adopted; and/or
3. the spouse of the noncitizen during their
marriage if the noncitizen is still married to the spouse or is widowed; or
No quarter may be claimed after December 31, 1996 if benefits
from a federal means-tested program, defined by
106 CMR
362.240, were received from any state during
that same quarter,
(h) is a veteran or active duty personnel as
defined in
106 CMR
362.240(F).
(8)
Battered
Noncitizen. A noncitizen who is battered is an eligible noncitizen
when he or she has proof of the battering and meets the following conditions:
(a) The noncitizen must have one of the
following:
1. a Form 1-130 petition filed by
his or her spouse or parent;
2. a
Form 1-130 petition filed as a widow(er) of a U.S. Citizen;
3. an approved self-petition under the
Violence Against Women Act or a pending self-petition under the Act with a
notice of prima facie determination (including those filed by
a parent); or
4. an application for
cancellation of removal or suspension of deportation filed as a victim of
domestic violence;
(b)
The noncitizen, the noncitizen's child or the noncitizen child's parent has
been abused in the U.S. under any of the circumstances in 106 CMR
362.220(B)(8)(b) l. through 3.:
1. The
noncitizen has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty in the U.S. by a
spouse or parent of the noncitizen, or by a member of the spouse's or parent's
family residing in the same household, if the spouse or parent consents to or
acquiesces in the battery and cruelty;
2. The noncitizen's child has been battered
or subjected to extreme cruelty in the U.S. by a spouse or parent of the
noncitizen, or by a member of the spouse's or parent's family residing in the
same household if the spouse or parent consents to or acquiesces in the battery
or cruelty, and the noncitizen did not actively participate in the battery or
cruelty; or
3. The parent of a
noncitizen child has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty in the U.S.
by the parent's spouse, or by a member of the spouse's family residing in the
same household as the parent, if the spouse consents to or acquiesces in such
battery or cruelty;
(c)
There is a substantial connection between the battery or extreme cruelty and
the need for SNAP benefits;
(d) The
battered noncitizen, child, or parent no longer resides in the same household
as the abuser; and
(e) The
noncitizen meets one of the following conditions:
1. has resided as a qualified noncitizen in
the U.S. for five years;
2. was
born on or before August 22, 1931 and was lawfully residing in the U.S. on
August 22, 1996;
3. is a child
younger than 18 years old;
4. is
disabled as defined by
106 CMR
361.210: Elderly or Disabled
Individuals; or
5. is a
veteran or active duty personnel as defined by
106 CMR
362.240(F).
(9)
Parolee. A noncitizen present in the U.S. as a parolee
under section 212(d)(5) of the INA for at least one year is an eligible
noncitizen when he or she:
(a) has resided as
a qualified noncitizen in the U.S. for five years;
(b) was born on or before August 22, 1931 and
was lawfully residing in the U.S. on August 22, 1996;
(c) is a child younger than 18 years
old;
(d) is disabled as defined by
106 CMR
361.210: Elderly or Disabled
Individuals; or
(e) is a
veteran or active duty personnel as defined in
106 CMR
361.240(F).
(10)
Conditional
Entrant. A noncitizen present in the U.S. as a conditional entrant
under section 203(a)(7) of the INA is an eligible noncitizen when he or she:
(a) has resided as a qualified noncitizen in
the U.S. for five years;
(b) was
born on or before August 22, 1931 and was lawfully residing in the U.S. on
August 22, 1996;
(c) is a child
younger than 18 years old;
(d) is
disabled as defined by
106 CMR
361.210: Elderly or Disabled
Individuals; or
(e) is a
veteran or active duty personnel as defined by
106 CMR
362.240(F).
(C)
Verification of Noncitizen Status. The noncitizen must
submit verification, in accordance with Department procedures, of the eligible
noncitizen status and the date the status was granted for each household member
at application. Unchanged noncitizen status shall not be reverified unless the
information is questionable or outdated. In addition, the noncitizen must
verify other noncitizen eligibility requirements as described under the
applicable noncitizen status at 106 CMR 362.220(A).
If the noncitizen claims an eligible noncitizen status but the
documentation is lost or missing, and he or she verified that they have
formally requested from a Federal agency verification of their noncitizen
status, the Department shall certify the individual for up to six months from
the date of the original request for verification.
(D)
Ineligible Legal Noncitizen
Status. An individual present in the U.S. under conditions or
sections of the INA not described in 106 CMR 362.220(A) and (B) is ineligible
for SNAP benefits. His or her income or assets shall be considered in
accordance with
106 CMR
365.520(B).
(E)
Nonimmigrant Noncitizen
Status. An individual lawfully residing in the U.S. in a
nonqualified status (such as a student or Hl-B Visa worker) is ineligible for
SNAP benefits. The nonimmigrant shall be ineligible in accordance with
106 CMR 361.230(D)
and his or her income and assets are
considered available to any remaining household members in accordance with
106 CMR
365.520(A).
(F)
Undetermined Noncitizen
Status. When a household indicates an inability or unwillingness
to provide verification of an eligible noncitizen status for any household
member, that household member shall be ineligible in accordance with
106 CMR
361.230(D), and his or her
income and assets considered available to any remaining household members in
accordance with
106 CMR
365.520(A). In such cases
the Department shall not continue efforts to obtain documentation.
(G)
Not Legally Residing
Noncitizen Status. When a household verifies illegal noncitizen
status for any household member by presenting to the Department a Final Order
of Deportation, that household member shall be ineligible in accordance with
106 CMR
361.230(D), and his or her
income and assets considered available to any remaining household members in
accordance with
106 CMR
365.520(A).
