Washington Spends About $3 Billion Per Year on Food Stamps for Noncitizens

August 21, 2024

By Tom Gantert (The Center Square)

Every year, the United States has allowed between 1.47 million to 1.86 million noncitizens to receive food stamps from the federal government at a taxpayer cost of almost $3 billion a year.

That is according to annual reports from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for its Supplement Nutritional Assistance Program.

“Only U.S. citizens and certain lawfully present non-citizens may receive SNAP benefits,” said Hal Sullivan, spokesperson for the USDA in an email to The Center Square. “SNAP is not and has never been available to undocumented non-citizens. Non-citizens like tourists and students are generally not eligible. Non-citizens who are eligible based on their immigration status must meet SNAP eligibility requirements, such as income and resource limits, and may also need to meet a waiting period.”

Noncitizens eligible for food stamps include refugees, individuals granted asylum, victims of severe trafficking, people who have had their deportation withheld, Amerasians, Cuban and Haitian entrants, Iraqi and Afghan special immigrants, Green Card holders, battered non-citizens, conditional entrants and those granted parole for a period of at least one year are eligible for SNAP.

As of April 2024, SNAP had 41.58 million participants with annual benefits costing about $90 billion.

In 2022, there were 1.46 million noncitizens on SNAP at an annual cost of $2.95 billion. That’s the most recent year data is available. There were 1.44 million noncitizens on food stamps in 2019 at an annual cost of $2.12 billion. In 2015, there were 1.86 million nonresidents receiving SNAP benefits at an annual cost of $2.97 billion.

Syndicated with permission from The Center Square.