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Title 7: SNAP Page 15 Iowa Department of Health and Human Services Employees’ Manual Chapter C: Nonfinancial Eligibility Categorical Eligibility Revised September 27, 2024 Claims Claims Legal reference: 7 CFR 273.18 Policy: Categorical eligibility cannot be rescinded retroactively. Procedure: Do not do a claim because a household should not have been categorically eligible. Do not establish a SNAP claim if it is discovered the household should not have been approved for FIP, SSI, GA, or PHMP. Do a claim if changes in income were required to be reported for SNAP and would have affected the benefit level. Also complete a claim if incorrect deductions or household size were used. Citizenship and Alien Status Legal reference: 7 CFR 273.2(b), 273.4(a) Policy: Only the following people can get SNAP benefits: United States citizens, Non-citizen nationals of the United States, and Aliens who hold an immigration status as an “eligible alien” for SNAP purposes. Procedure: United States citizens are people born in one of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, or the Virgin Islands. Non-citizen nationals are people born in American Samoa or the Swain Islands. Non-citizen nationals are the same as U.S. citizens for SNAP purposes. Comment: A person who has been convicted of a felony does lose certain rights of citizenship. However, these people are still considered to be citizens for the purposes of SNAP. See 7-I, Who Is An Eligible Alien for who is an “eligible alien” for SNAP purposes. Also see 7-I, Documentation of United States Citizenship by Birth and Documentation of Acquired Citizenship for listings of the kind of documents that can be used as evidence of citizenship. Cooperation Legal reference: 7 CFR 273.2(d)(1) and (2) Policy: In order to be determined eligible for SNAP, households must: Complete and sign the application form; Be interviewed; Verify certain information;