CITIZENSHIP AND NON-CITIZENSHIP STATUS

Citizens of the United States are potentially eligible for participation in SNAP, provided they meet other eligibility requirements. Most non-citizens must be in a qualified non-citizen status and meet one (1) additional condition to be eligible for participation in the Program. Some classes of non-citizens are eligible for participation without having to meet an additional condition. A. Citizens and Non-Citizen Nationals 1. The following individuals are considered United States citizens: a. A person born in the United States or in the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands or the Mariana Islands; b. A person who has become a citizen through the naturalization process; c. A person born outside of the United States to at least one (1) U.S. citizen parent; and d. A child under eighteen (18) years of age adopted or born outside the U.S. with a parent who is a U. S. citizen, who has been admitted as a lawful permanent resident, and is in the legal and physical custody of a parent who is a U.S. citizen. 2. Although not considered U.S. citizens, non-citizen nationals have the same potential eligibility for SNAP as U.S. citizens. Non-citizen nationals are those individuals born in an outlying possession of the United States (either American Samoa or Swain’s Island) on or after the date the U.S. acquired the possession, or a person whose parents are U.S. non- citizen nationals. B. Non-Citizens Qualified non-citizens and certain groups of non-citizens who are not qualified are eligible for participation under certain conditions. Some qualified non-citizens must also meet an additional condition, as outlined in Section 4.305, B, 3, to be eligible for participation. Each of the following categories of qualified non-citizens stands alone for the purposes of determining eligibility. If eligibility expires under one (1) eligible category, the local office shall determine if eligibility exists under another category. 1. Qualified Non-Citizen Status The following classes of non-citizens, based on the immigration status of an individual, are defined as a qualified non-citizen. The non-citizen shall be qualified as listed below at the time the non-citizen applies for, receives, or attempts to receive SNAP benefits. A non-citizen under the age of eighteen (18) that is in a qualified alien status, as outlined in paragraphs A and B of this subsection, shall be eligible for participation in the program without having to meet an additional requirement. Once the non-citizen turns eighteen

(18), the eligibility of the non-citizen shall be reviewed. a. A non-citizen in one (1) of the following qualified non-citizen statuses is not required to meet an additional condition to be eligible for participation in the Program and is eligible for participation indefinitely from the date the non-citizen obtains qualified non-citizen status or enters the U.S. in a qualifying status. 1) A refugee who is admitted to the United States under 8 U.S.C. 1157. 2) Victims of trafficking, under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, as amended, certified by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR). This person shall have a certification letter. a) ORR issues a letter of eligibility for adults and children under the age of eighteen (18). A trafficked minor shall have either an interim assistance letter or an eligibility letter from ORR to be eligible for SNAP. The local office shall accept these letters in place of Department of Homeland Security documentation. b) Certification letters and eligibility letters do not expire; however, interim assistance letters that are provided to children are valid for ninety (90) calendar days from the effective date of the letter. ORR may extend the interim eligibility an additional thirty (30) calendar days. Children with an interim assistance letter can only receive SNAP benefits until the expiration of the period established in the interim letter. c) The local office can verify the status of these individuals through SAVE. 3) Asylees granted asylum under Section 208 of the INA, which is codified throughout Title 8 of the United States Code. The U.S. Code does not include any later amendments to or editions of the incorporated material. Copies of the federal laws are available for inspection as defined in 4.000. 4) A non-citizen whose deportation is being withheld under 8 U.S.C. 1224(H) as in effect prior to April 1, 1997, or whose removal is withheld under 8 U.S.C. 1231(B)(3). 5) Retroactive to August 22, 1996, Cuban or Haitian entrants under 8 U.S.C. 1522(E). 6) Retroactive to August 22, 1996, Amerasians under 8 U.S.C 1612.. 7) Iraqi and Afghan Special Immigrants (SIV) Special immigrant status under 8 U.S.C. 1101(A)(27) may be granted to Iraqi and Afghan nationals who have worked on behalf of the U.S. Government in Iraq or Afghanistan. The Department of Defense Appropriations Act of 2010 (DODAA), P.L. 111-118, Section 8120 enacted on December 19, 2009 provides that SIVs are eligible for all benefits to the same extent and the same period as refugees. b. Non-citizens in one (1) of the following qualified non-citizen statuses are required to meet an additional condition (see Section 4.305, B, 3) to be eligible for participation in the Program. 1) Lawfully Admitted for Permanent Residence (LPRs) under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). LPRs are holders of Green Cards. If a non-citizen is in a qualified non-citizen status as outlined in paragraph a. of this section and later adjusts to LPR status, the non- citizen does not have to meet an additional condition to be eligible for participation and shall remain eligible based on the previous qualified status. 2) Paroled into the United States under 8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(5) for at least one

(1) year. 3) Granted conditional entry pursuant to 8 U.S.C. 1153(a)(7) as in effect before April 1, 1980. 4) A non-citizen who has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty in the U.S. by a family member with whom the non-citizen resides, such as by a spouse, a parent, or a member of the spouse or parent's family. This qualified alien status also extends to a non-citizen whose child has been battered or subjected to battery or cruelty or to a non-citizen child whose parent has been battered. To establish eligibility, the local office shall determine that the non-citizen has satisfied three (3) requirements. Spouses and children who have applied for or have been granted protection under the Violence Against Women Act will meet these requirements. a) The battered non-citizen(s) shall show that he/he has an approved or pending petition which makes a prima facie case for immigration status in one (1) of the following categories: i) United States Citizenship and Immigration Services

(USCIS) Form I-130, last modified July 20, 2021, petition for alien relative, filed by their spouse or the child’s parent, which is incorporated by reference. No later editions or amendments are incorporated. This form is available at no cost from the USCIS at https://www.USCIS.gov/I-130. The form is also available for public inspection and copying at the Food and Energy Assistance Division Director, Colorado Department of Human Services, 1575 Sherman Street, 3rd Floor, Denver, Colorado 80203; ii) Form I-130, as incorporated by reference above, petition as a widow(er) of a U.S. citizen; iii) Self-petition under the Violence Against Women Act (including those filed by a parent on behalf of an abused child), USCIS Form I-360, last modified June 9, 2020, which is incorporated by reference. No later editions or amendments are incorporated. This form is available at no cost from the USCIS at https://www.USCIS.gov/I-360. The form is also available for public inspection and copying at the Food and Energy Assistance Division Director, Colorado Department of Human Services, 1575 Sherman Street, 3rd Floor, Denver, Colorado, 80203; or, iv) An application for cancellation of removal or suspension of deportation filed as a victim of domestic violence. b) There is substantial connection between the battery or extreme cruelty and the need for SNAP benefits; and c) The battered non-citizen, child, or parent no longer resides in the same home as the abuser. 2. Eligible Non-Citizens Not in a Qualified Status: The following classes of non-citizens are not defined as having a qualified status but are potentially eligible for participation in SNAP without having to meet an additional condition

(see Section 4.305, B, 3). All other classes of non-citizens that are not in a qualified status are not eligible for participation in SNAP. a. Certain American Indians Born Abroad American Indians born abroad in Canada living in the U.S. under Section 289 of the INA or non-citizen members of a federally recognized Indian tribe under Section 4(e) of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450(B)(E) who are recognized as eligible for the special programs and services provided by the U.S. to Indians because of their status as Indians. This provision was intended to cover Native Americans who are entitled to cross the U.S. border between Canada and/or Mexico. It was intended to include but is not limited to the St. Regis Band of the Mohawk in New York State, the Micmac

(also known as Mi’kmaq) in Maine, the Abenaki in Vermont, and the Kickapoo in Texas. b. Hmong or Highland Laotian Tribal Members An individual lawfully residing in the U.S. who was a member of a Hmong or Highland Laotian tribe that rendered assistance to U.S. personnel by taking part in a military or rescue operation during the Vietnam era (August 5, 1964 – May 7, 1975). This category includes: 1) Spouse or surviving spouse of a deceased Hmong or Highland Laotian Tribal Member who is not remarried; and/or, 2) Unmarried dependent child of Hmong or Highland Laotian Tribal Member who is: under the age of eighteen (18) or a full-time student under the age of twenty-two (22); 3) Unmarried child under the age of eighteen (18) or a full-time student under the age of twenty-two (22) of a deceased Hmong or Highland Laotian Tribal Member, provided the child was dependent upon them at the time of the Hmong or Highland Laotian tribal member’s death; or, 4) Unmarried child with disabilities age eighteen (18) or older if the child with disabilities had a disability and was dependent on the person prior to the child's eighteenth (18th) birthday. A) For purposes of this paragraph, “child” means the legally adopted or biological child of the person described in this section as a Hmong or Highland Laotian Tribal Member. 3. Additional Conditions Non-citizens in a qualified status as outlined in subsection 4.305, B, 1, are required to meet one additional condition to be eligible for participation in the Program. At the time the non-citizen applies for SNAP, they need only satisfy one of the following conditions to be eligible: a. Five (5) Years of Residence The non-citizen has lived in the U.S. in a qualified non-citizen status for five (5) years. The five (5) year waiting period begins on the date the non-citizen obtains status as a qualified non-citizen or enters the U.S. in a qualifying status. b. Forty (40) Qualifying Work Quarters A person shall have satisfied this additional condition if they are lawfully admitted for permanent residence while already possessing credit for forty (40) qualifying work quarters as defined under Title II of the Social Security Act. In some cases, an applicant may have work from employment that is not covered by Title II of the Social Security Act, but which is countable toward the forty (40) quarters test, and there are also cases in which SSA records do not show current year’s earnings. Such quarters are still countable for the forty (40) quarter test, but the individual non-citizen shall be responsible for providing evidence needed to verify the quarters. 1) The sum of work quarters can include: a) Quarters the non-citizen worked; b) Quarters credited from the work of a parent of such a non-citizen while the non-citizen was under eighteen (18), which includes quarters worked before the non-citizen was born or adopted; or c) Quarters credited from the work of the non-citizen’s spouse. Quarters are only creditable to the non-citizen for work performed by his or her spouse if the couple is still legally married, or if the spouse becomes deceased while married to the non-citizen, and the work being credited to the non-citizen was performed after the marriage began. If a couple divorces prior to determination of SNAP eligibility, a spouse may not get credit for quarters of their spouse. However, if the local office determines eligibility of a non-citizen based on the quarters of the spouse, and then the couple divorces, the non-citizen's eligibility continues until the next re-certification. At that time, the local office shall determine the non-citizen's eligibility without crediting the non-citizen with the former spouse's quarters of coverage. 2) The sum of work quarters cannot include: a) Quarters in which not enough income was earned to qualify, or, b) Quarters earned after December 31, 1996, cannot be counted if the non-citizen, during the quarter, received SNAP or any other federal means-tested public benefits, such as Medicaid, SSI, TANF, or state Children’s Health Insurance Program. c. Children Under Eighteen (18) A non-citizen under eighteen (18) years of age in a qualified non-citizen status who lawfully resides in the U.S. When the non-citizen turns eighteen (18), non- citizen eligibility shall be reviewed. d. Blind or Person with Disabilities A non-citizen who is blind or a person with a disability if the non-citizen is receiving benefits or assistance for their condition regardless of entry date. e. Born on or before August 22, 1931 who lawfully resided in the U.S. on August 22, 1996. f. Military Connection 1) Qualified non-citizens with a military connection, including an individual who is lawfully residing in a state and is on active duty, other than training, in the military, excluding national guard; or, 2) An honorably discharged veteran, as defined in Section 101 of Title 38, U.S.C, whose discharge is not because of immigration status, who fulfills the minimum active-duty service requirements. This includes an individual who died in active military duty, naval or air service. This provision extends to the spouse, un-remarried surviving spouse, and unmarried dependent children. A discharge “under honorable conditions,” which is not the same as an honorable discharge, does not meet this requirement. 3) The definition of “veteran” shall also include: a. An individual who served before July 1, 1946, in the organized military forces of the Commonwealth of the Philippines while such forces were in the service of the Armed Forces of the U.S. or in the Philippine Scouts; or, b. An individual who is on active duty (other than active duty for training) in the Armed Forces of the United States, or the spouse of such a person; or, c. The spouse of a veteran who served at least twenty-four (24) months in the Armed Forces. This includes the spouse of a deceased veteran, provided the marriage fulfilled the requirements of 38 U.S.C. 1304, and the spouse has not remarried; or d. An unmarried dependent child of a veteran who is under the age of eighteen (18) or, if a full-time student, under the age of twenty- two (22); or, e. Unmarried dependent child of a deceased veteran provided such child was dependent upon the veteran at the time of the veteran's death; or an unmarried child with disabilities age eighteen (18) or older if the child with disabilities was disabled and dependent upon the deceased veteran prior to the child's eighteenth (18th) birthday. 1. For purposes of this provision, “child” means the legally adopted or biological child of the veteran.