To be eligible for welfare in California, you must be a United States citizen, legal immigrant, meet certain humanitarian requirements if you are a non-citizen, and pass income tests. Eligibility does not always guarantee acceptance.
California welfare, also known as Calfresh, is available to U.S. citizens, legal immigrants who have lived in America five or more years, people who are receiving disability assistance or are less than 18 years old, or were given humanitarian admission. Legal but temporary non-citizens, such as students, cannot receive Calfresh.
To meet income requirements, a household's gross income cannot exceed 130 percent of the federal poverty level. However, if there is a disabled or elderly person who can qualify as a separate household, the amount is 165 percent. Net income cannot be more than 100 percent of the federal poverty level.
