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Title 7: SNAP Page 6 Iowa Department of Health and Human Services Employees’ Manual Chapter I: Specific Households and Participants Households with Alien Members Revised February 13, 2026 Alien Status Verification Requirements Alien status verification is a 2-step process. Step 1: Obtain verification An alien claiming to hold an eligible status must provide acceptable documentation which verifies they have one of the four eligible alien statuses described under Who Is an Eligible Alien, if not already on file. See Requesting Acceptable Documentation of Eligible Alien Status Additionally, LPRs claiming to be exempt from the five-year bar may also need to provide documentation proving their exemption if the documentation they provide or HHS has on file to verify their alien status, does not do so. See The Five-Year Bar and Exemptions Step 2: Validate Documentation through SAVE The eligible status of an alien applying for SNAP benefits must be verified by using the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) system after acceptable documentation is received. See Using Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE). Requesting Acceptable Documentation of Eligible Alien Status Policy: All aliens claiming to have an eligible alien status for SNAP must provide acceptable documentation of their eligible status. See Types of Acceptable Documentation of Eligible Alien Status. Procedure: When it’s necessary to send a request for information for verification of eligible alien status, give the household 10 days to provide documentation of the status:  If the 10-day period ends on or before the 30th day after the date of application and documentation is not provided, deny benefits for the alien. Consider the alien to be an “ineligible alien.” See Note below.  If the 10-day period ends after the 30th day following the date of application and the household is otherwise eligible, assume the alien is an “eligible alien” and issue benefits no later than 30 days after the date of application. If you do not receive documentation by the due date, cancel the alien for the following month. Consider the alien to be an “ineligible alien” from that point forward. See Note below.