Current through February, 2024
Section 3000
Refugee Cash Assistance (RCA)
The Refugee Act of 1980 gives the Immigration and
Naturalization Service (INS) jurisdiction over an individual who is admitted to
the United States as a refugee. The Act will result in a standardized identity
for all refugees without regard to nationality. However, for the next several
years, there will continue to be certain individuals who qualify for refugee
status and, therefore, refugee assistance. The following persons may be
eligible for assistance under Refugee Cash Assistance:
A. A person from Cambodia, Laos or Vietnam
who is currently receiving assistance under the Indochinese Refugee Assistance
Program (IRAP).
B. A person from
Cuba who is currently receiving ANFC and/or Medicaid and who entered the United
States on or after October 1, 1978.
C. A person from Cambodia, Laos or Vietnam,
provided that person's documentation (I-94), if issued on or after June 1,
1980, clearly indicates that person has been paroled as a refugee or asylee [
Section 212(d)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA)].
D. A person from Cuba who entered the United
States on or after October 1, 1978. If the I-94 was issued on or after April
21, 1980, it must clearly indicate the person has been paroled as a refugee or
asylee.
E. A person from any
country other than those listed in C. and D. above who has been paroled as a
refugee or asylee. (I-94 should indicate parole status.)
NOTE: While the exact wording on the I-94 may differ in C-E,
it must clearly indicate that the person has been paroled as a refugee or
asylee.
F. A person
admitted from any country as a conditional entrant under Section 203(a)(7) of
the INA. However, a person with an INS status of applicant for asylum or a
Cuban/Haitian entrant is not eligible.
G. A person from any country admitted as a
refugee under Section
207
of the INA.
H. A person from any
country who has been granted asylum under Section
208
of the INA.
I. A person from any
country who previously held one of the categories listed above whose status has
been changed to permanent resident alien.
Documentation required: A form I-151 or I-551 (Resident Alien
forms). Also, verification that previous status was one of those listed above
(i.e., a photocopy of a previous I-94).
Section 3010 Eligibility
A. All refugees who apply for assistance and
have minor children shall have their application screened for ANFC eligibility
on the basis of absence, UP or incapacity. If eligible they shall be granted
ANFC.
B. Benefits to refugees with
or without children who apply for assistance and do not meet the ANFC
requirements, but who meet the ANFC income and resource requirements and the
employment requirements in WAM 2503 may be paid under the Refugee Cash
Assistance program (RCA) in accordance with Federal rules and policies. RCA,
which is 100 percent federally funded, is not an entitlement program. Changes
in eligibility for benefits are subject to only a ten day prior notice to the
recipient. Qualification for RCA means:
1.
Categorical relatedness is waived. In other words, assistance and services are
provided on the basis of need without regard to family composition or the
presence of children.
2. Financial
assistance will be based upon ANFC need standards with income and resources
taken into consideration and payments made according to the State's ANFC
payment levels. The State's standard for an assistance unit of one in ANFC will
be used for single individuals and the two-person standard for a couple.
A person receiving assistance under the Refugee Program is
not entitled to the 30 and 1/3 earned income disregard.
3. Financial resources which are in fact not
available to the refugee, including resources remaining in his country of
origin, shall not be considered in determining eligibility.
4. The voluntary agency or the refugee's
sponsor responsible for the refugee's initial resettlement must be contacted to
determine if any kind of financial assistance is being provided to the
refugee(s). Any financial assistance being provided by the voluntary agency or
sponsor is countable as unearned income for ANFC purposes. The income and
resources of sponsors will not be considered in determining eligibility for
refugees. (For non-refugee sponsored aliens see WAM 2252.4)
5. Each person receiving assistance under RCA
must be reviewed in the final month of RCA eligibility.
C. Once a refugee is no longer eligible for
RCA according to Federal rules and policies, he or she may receive ANFC or
General Assistance if determined eligible for either program. Refugees are not
eligible for General Assistance during the period of potential RCA
eligibility.
Section
3020 Relationship to SSI/AABD
All refugee recipients who are 65 years of age or older or
who are blind or disabled will be referred immediately to the Social Security
District Office to apply for SSI/AABD benefits.
Such a refugee will be included in the Reach Up grant until
SSI/AABD benefits become effective. SSA should be notified as to what amount of
the Reach Up grant should be considered as income in the SSI/AABD grant, as
outlined in Procedures (P-2220 I).
Section 3030 Employment Requirements
A. Refugees who are categorically eligible
for regular ANFC financial assistance must meet ANFC JOBS registration
requirements.
B. Refugees who are
eligible for financial assistance under Refugee Cash Assistance must meet the
following requirements:
1. Every unemployed
member of a refugee assistance group who applied for or receives refugee
financial assistance must as a condition of eligibility register for employment
with the Department of Employment & Training/Vermont Job Service. This
requirement, however, does not apply to the following:
a. A person who is already registered for
employment through the Food Stamp Program.
b. A person determined by a physician to be
medically unable to work for up to 90 days, or incapacitated (to be determined
by the Incapacity Examiner) or 65 years of age or older.
c. A person whose presence in the home is
required because of illness or incapacity of another member of the
household.
d. A mother or other
relative of a child under the age of six who is personally caring for the child
with only brief and infrequent absences.
e. A child who is under age 16, or a child of
16 or 17 years old who is a full-time student.
f. An individual who is enrolled fulltime in
a training program approved by the State Refugee Coordinator.
2. A refugee must be certified by
the State Refugee Coordinator as a participant in either an English language or
job-training program as a condition of eligibility. A Refugee Checklist Form
signed by the State Refugee Coordinator must be presented by the client at time
of initial application. Inability to read, speak or understand the English
language will not exempt a refugee from registering for employment.
3. A refugee must not be a full-time student
in an institution of higher education. Such are not considered appropriate
training and are not eligible for assistance under the Refugee Cash
Assistance.
4. A refugee must not
have refused an appropriate offer of employment nor have voluntarily terminated
employment without good cause, within the last 30 days. [Definition of good
cause as for ANFC, WAM 2333.2 # 7]
Section 3031 Sanctions
Refusal to cooperate with any of the above requirements in
2503 without good cause will cause the client to be de-registered and to be
ineligible for assistance:
- For three payment months for the first occurrence.
- For six payment months for the second and subsequent
occurrences.
Section 3040
Unaccompanied Minors
The same range of child welfare benefits and services
available in foster care cases to other children in a state applies also to
unaccompanied refugee minors. Policy includes preparation and updating of a
services plan for each child, implementation of the plan, payment of benefits,
and periodic case review and reporting.
An unaccompanied refugee minor is defined as:
A person who has not yet attained his 18th birthday, or the
age of majority in the state in which he is residing, and
Who has no immediate adult relatives in the United States,
and
Who has been lawfully admitted to the United States as a
refugee.
Before a voluntary resettlement agency places an
unaccompanied child in a community, the voluntary agency shall consult with the
appropriate state or local public child welfare authorities. Arrangements shall
be made whereby the state establishes legal responsibility for the care and
maintenance of the unaccompanied minor.
Assistance to an unaccompanied refugee minor is not
determined by any time limits since his or her entry into the U.S. An
unaccompanied refugee minor is eligible for assistance under Refugee Cash
Assistance until the end of the month of that person's 18th birthday.
Section 3050 Fair Hearings
Refugees are entitled to the right of a fair hearing and
appeal as accorded to applicants and recipients in all programs administered by
the Department of Social Welfare. The provisions and procedures relevant to
fair hearings and appeal shall apply.
Refugees may receive food stamps. The same eligibility
criteria are applied as to any other applicant or recipient.
