SNAP stands for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and it is meant for those low-income families or individuals. It is true that this program is new for some people since they are used to the previous one. The Food Stamp Program was the former one and some people prefer to call SNAP checks that way, Food Stamps. Whichever name you want to use, this program is very useful for families who cannot afford to buy healthy food.
Bear in mind that sometimes unhealthy food is much cheaper than those that are nutritious and therefore good for your health. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the SNAP program is regularly updated. They do so in order to change the requirements and adapt it to the new reality of the USA. The amount of money beneficiaries receive depends on their income and expenses.
Which tests do SNAP beneficiaries need to meet to collect checks?
There are three tests SNAP beneficiaries need to pass following Federal guidelines. It is essential to check the income a household has to determine whether they are eligible or not. Two of these tests have to do directly with 2 types of income. What they will check is the gross income per month you have, net income, and assets. If you do not know what gross monthly income means, it refers to the income your household has before they apply any deductions.
This gross monthly income must be at or below 130% of the poverty line in the USA. Many of you might not know what the poverty line refers to, so let us explain it with an example. Imagine that your family has just three members. To work out the SNAP checks amount, the earnings this family could get per month are equal to 1,920 dollars in 2023 to be in the poverty line. So, they could earn up to 2,495 dollars per month to reach 130% of the poverty line.
How much is the poverty line for a year for a family of three members in 2023?
It is approximately 29,940 dollars according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities to qualify to get SNAP benefits. However, if your family has more members, this poverty line is bigger. On the contrary, if your family is smaller, your poverty line will be smaller too. Moving on to the net income, this must be once more at or below the poverty line in the USA.
The third and last thing they will have to check is your assets. In this case, they must fall below the limits they set. These assets could reach 2,750 dollars or even less if they do not have a member with a disability or a member at the age of 60 or older. Having a member with a disability or a member who is 60 years old or older increases this limit. Your household could have assets of up to $4,250 or less to be eligible for SNAP checks.
So if you’re in a situation like that, the best thing to do is to apply for this kind of financial help from the government. In addition to that, there are also other benefits that we can apply for, whether it’s Supplemental Security Income or something like that. It all depends on what we need and what we can get.