Tax refund/Student loans/Grants... do they affect food stamps?

[Thystle]

Do any of those count as income towards food stamps? If you are a full time student using some of them to live on.

[nolansmummy]

I think it varies state to state, but student loans and grants for an undergrad degree do not affect food stamps in my state.

[Thystle]

Ok this would be in Colorado or Missouri if that helps.



Thanks!!!

[BathrobeGoddess]

They do not in CO...

[StephandOwen]

As far as I know, when tax time comes around they do not count that money against you for fs. If they have a question about the amount in your bank account they will just ask you to bring 2 months of past statements so they can see how much you had before the tax money went in.

[Hey Mama!]

I'm not sure but they count the GI Bill as income in MO We are just under the cut off for our family with me not working but don't qualify because dh gets the GI bill money monthly.

ETA: just did the quiz again and it did not have a place to count any of those as either earned or unearned income.

[Satori]

I know in CA grants and tax refund doesn't count but student loans do count against you.

[bobandjess99]

They do count in IN.

[Fruitful4Him]

Originally Posted by bobandjess99

They do count in IN.

I live in IN and I get pell grants for school and we get tax returns each year...it has never affected our FS.

[AndrewsMother]

Yes, if you do not use your refund for school related expenses.

[Fruitful4Him]

Originally Posted by AndrewsMother

Yes, if you do not use your refund for school related expenses.

are you saying that your tax refund will affect your food stamp allotment if you don't use it for school expenses? What state is this?

[AndrewsMother]

Originally Posted by Fruitful4Him

are you saying that your tax refund will affect your food stamp allotment if you don't use it for school expenses? What state is this?

I was not specific enough. I should have said grant/scholarship refunds will effect FS if the refund is not utilized for educational purposes. This was applicable to Texas in 2007, I am not sure if the requirements changed.

According to this estimator, grants, loans and scholarships are considered unearned income.

[whiddle]

No, they do not. It doesn't matter what you use the money for it will not affect your food stamps.

FS is a federal program. It DOES NOT vary state to state.

[whiddle]

Originally Posted by AndrewsMother

I was not specific enough. I should have said grant/scholarship refunds will effect FS if the refund is not utilized for educational purposes. This was applicable to Texas in 2007, I am not sure if the requirements changed.

According to this estimator, grants, loans and scholarships are considered unearned income.

You have to report the scholarships, grants, loans but as long as they are kept in a separately identifiable account from your other income/money, they do not count even if you use them to pay the electric bill or to tip at a strip club. Just keep them in a separate account.

[whiddle]

Originally Posted by Satori

student loans do count against you.

Not true. Again they must be kept in a separate account to not count against you as income/assets. http://www.foodstampguide.org/how-th...s-student-aid/

Further, NO LOANS count as income. If your worker is counting loans as income they are incorrect.

[jrdmac10]

I think it really depends. If you completed your FAFSA and were approved for various federal college loans without a cosigner, then you may be able to credit that aid towards other areas. Otherwise you will have to ask you individual state's department of education to see what the exact policy is.

[la mamita]

in my experience: student loans and grants do not count as income. i always declared those and was very specific to my worker that these were LOANS, not income. state: michigan.

dunno about refunds.

[vannienicole]

Loans do not count as income as you have to pay them back. Maybe refunds on scholarships as that is taxable, but not loans. State: OK.

Tax refunds don't count against you either.

[Ravin]

Loans don't count; they're not income, you'll have to pay them back.

Refunds don't count, because when they count wages, they count your gross income. The refund is just part of your gross income getting to you in a delayed manner, it's already been counted when they counted wages.

Grants might count, if they're for more than the amount of your student costs; we reported what DH had left from his grants after tuition/books/fees. I don't think they counted it, though.

[sunanthem]

wow, good to know, I always put my pell grants as my income on FS paperwork, but never the loans. I did not put my tax refund as income, b/c it's a refund, not new income. Either way, we've never had a problem with not getting FS, but we don't have real income to put on there either.