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401.2 TANF MANUAL 5/17 Page 2

B. Substantiation of Eligibility Factors

1. Initial Eligibility

The applicant must be advised of the need to substantiate eligibility factors (e.g., categorical requirements and income) including changes to the eligibility factors that may occur during the application process. The applicant must be advised that changes that occur after the initial interview and before the date of the Notice of Action to approve must be reported within 10 days. Changes that occur within 10 days following the date of the Notice of Action to approve must also be reported.

The responsibility of the EW is to secure, evaluate, substantiate, and record the facts regarding each element of eligibility, including the date of substantiation and the method of securing the information. This responsibility includes acting on information reported by the applicant during the application processing period as noted above. This information must be entered in the applicant's VaCMS case.

In determining initial eligibility, the EW will verify the following eligibility factors through inquiries into the relevant systems:

• Alien Status – SAVE; • Alien Number – SOLQ-I, the State Online Query-Inquiry System, via SPIDeR (if not entered into the VaCMS record and/or verified at registration); • Social Security Number – SVES (State Verification and Exchange System) or SOLQ-I (if not entered into the VaCMS record and/or verified at registration); • Child Support – DCSE APECS system, via SPIDeR; • SSA/SSI – SOLQ-I; • Unemployment Income – VEC, via SPIDeR; • Earned Income – Work Number, via SPIDeR, but only when information cannot be verified through other means.

The EW must document the date and results of the systems inquiries in the comment box on the appropriate non-financial or income screens in VaCMS. If a system inquiry confirms that an individual does not have unearned income, the EW will document the same in the VaCMS Case Narrative.

At the time of application, there should be a joint decision between the client and the EW as to how necessary verification will be secured and who will assume the responsibility for securing each. The EW must provide any assistance unit that needs and wants help, assistance in obtaining any necessary verifications. If the individual has a disability that impairs the individual’s ability to gather the information necessary to establish eligibility for benefits, the EW must offer to assist the individual in gathering such information. In addition, if after the EW and applicant initially divide the responsibility for obtaining verification the applicant is, due to a disability, unable to secure information he or she agreed to obtain, the EW must revise the initial division responsibility and assist with obtaining additional information.

If, after advising the applicant of the necessary information, the applicant is reluctant or unwilling to provide verifications and refuses to permit the EW to secure them, the EW must consider carefully with him his reasons and explain that without the required verification, eligibility cannot be established. TANF Transmittal 61