Fourth Edition, 2002

(Now out of print. No current plans to issue an updated edition.)

Finding immigrant families the services they need to succeed became even tougher when the 1996 welfare and immigration laws severely restricted immigrant access to public benefits. Since 1996, partial federal restorations and state replacement programs have reinstated some critical services, but keeping current with the latest rules remains daunting to experts and laypeople alike.

This guide was written to help readers navigate the complex intersection of immigration and public benefits law.

• Look up pictures of common immigration documents that will help determine your client’s status (documents are indexed by document number and immigration status to help readers quickly locate relevant images and explanations).
• Examine detailed keys that decode information on green cards, and documents evidencing entry into the U.S. and work authorization.
• Consult chapters on 23 major federal programs to learn about services the programs offer and which immigrants are eligible.
• Find out which states have set up replacement programs for immigrants still restricted from federal services.
• Learn about the recent restoration of federal food stamps to the largest number of immigrants since the 1996 welfare law.
• Learn which safety net programs are available to all immigrants, regardless of their lawful status.
• Find out which immigrants are authorized to work, and who can get a Social Security card.
• Learn about special programs that give lawful status to abandoned children and immigrant survivors of domestic violence.
• Understand how public charge, affidavits of support, and other barriers to access affect your immigrant clients.
• Look up more than 250 public benefit and immigration terms in the comprehensive glossary
• Consult tables that provide both snapshot overviews of eligibility and state-funded replacement programs, and detailed lists of documents used by different categories of immigrants.

The Guide to Immigrant Eligibility for Federal Programs Update Page provides updates and resources to augment the Guide‘s content.

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Guide to Immigrant Eligibility for Federal Programs (National Immigration Law Center, 4th ed., June 2002). Comprehensive, authoritative reference with chapters on 23 major federal programs and tables outlining who is eligible for which state replacement programs. Overview chapter and tables explain changes to immigrant eligibility enacted by 1996 welfare and immigration laws. Text describes immigration statuses, gives pictures of typical immigration documents, with keys to understanding the immigration codes. Glossary defines over 250 immigration and public benefits terms. ISBN 0967980208, 222 pp.: perfect bound. (Out of print. Download PDF of Part 1; download PDF of Parts 2 and 3.)

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