SSI For Noncitizens

SSI is a federal program that gives monthly benefits to low-income people. To get SSI, you have to be 65 or older or so disabled you can’t work. There are more rules and limits if you are a noncitizen. Even if you are in the U.S. permanently and legally and you are at least 65 or disabled, you may not be able to get SSI.

1. You are an American Indian born in Canada

2. You get SSI based on an application filed before January 1, 1979

OR

3. You are a “qualified” noncitizen

If you

• have a green card and were lawfully admitted for permanent residence under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).
• are a “refugee.” (This includes if you are “Amerasian” and your father was a U.S. citizen in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War years, if you are from Cuba or Haiti, or if you are an Afghan or Iraqi Special Immigrant).
• have been granted asylum.
• have been paroled into the U.S. for at least a year.
• have been granted withholding of deportation or cancellation of removal.
• have been granted a T-visa as a victim of severe trafficking.
• have been given battered immigrant status.

Then you are a qualified noncitizen.

If you don’t fit into one of these categories, you can’t get SSI.

If you do fit onto one of these categories, you still have to meet strict residency requirements. See the  attached flowchart to see if you can get SSI.

If you have questions about SSI and noncitizens, contact your local legal aid office.