Federally Funded

To be eligible for Federal CalWORKs, a non-citizen must be:

A California resident, and
A “qualified non-citizen” who arrived:
- Prior to 8/22/96, or
- On or after 8/22/96 and
  - meets the “exception criteria,” or
  - has resided in the U.S. for a period of 5 years beginning on the non-citizen's date of entry.

“Exception Criteria”

Qualified non-citizens who entered the U.S. on or after 8/22/96 are not eligible for Federal CalWORKs for five years from the date of entry unless they:

Become a U.S. citizen, or
Meet the “Exception Criteria.”

Qualified non-citizens who enter the U.S. at any time can be eligible for Federal CalWORKs immediately if they meet the following “exception criteria” and are otherwise eligible:

Non-Citizen Status	Definition
Asylee	Asylum has been granted under Section 208 of the Act. Refer to Asylee for additional information.
Refugee	Admitted as a refugee under Section 207 of the Act. Also included under Refugee status are Trafficking Victims.
Deportee	Deportation is being withheld under Section: 243(h) of the Act (as in effect immediately before the effective date of Section 307 of Division C of P.L. 104-208), or 241(b)(3) of the Act (as amended by Section 305(a) of Division C of P.L. 104-208).
Non-citizen with Veteran Status	Veteran status is defined as: A veteran (as defined in Section 101 of Title 38, U.S.C) with a discharge characterized as an honorable discharge and not an account of Alienage, and who fulfills the minimum active-duty service requirements of Section 5303A(d) of Title 38 U.S.C., or A veteran on active duty (other than active duty for training) in the Armed Forces of the United States, or The spouse or unmarried dependent child of an individual described in 1 or 2, or The surviving spouse of an individual (who has not remarried) described in 1 or 2 who is deceased if the marriage fulfills the requirements of 38 U.S.C., Section 1304.
LPR with Work Quarters	An LPR admitted to the U.S. under the Act and having 40 qualifying quarters of coverage as defined under Title II of the Social Security Act or can be credited with such qualifying quarters as provided under Section 435, and (ii) in the case of any such qualifying quarter creditable for any period beginning after December 31, 1996, did not receive any Federal means-tested public benefits (as provided under PRWORA section 403) during any such period.
Cuban-Haitian Entrant	A non-citizen who is a Cuban/Haitian entrant as defined in Section 501(e) of the Refugee Education Assistance Act of 1980.
Amerasian	A non-citizen admitted to the U.S. as an Amerasian as described in PRWORA, Section 402(a)(2)(A)(i)(V).
Victims of Trafficking, Domestic Violence, and Other Serious Crime	Non-citizens who meet the criteria in U.S. Code Title 22 and Title 8.
Compacts of Free Association (COFA) Citizens	Citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau who lawfully reside in the United States. Effective March 9, 2024, with the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) of 2024.

Federally Funded

“Exception Criteria”

Related Topics