§ 7.5 Supplemental Security Income

• Library: Rights of Foreign Nationals (OSBar) (2020 Ed.)

§ 7.5 SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME

§ 7.5-1 Eligibility

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a needs-based welfare benefit administered by the Social Security Administration. See generally 42 USC §§ 1381-1385. SSI is not the same as Title II Social Security Disability insurance (SSDI) or retirement benefits, which are based on past earning history. (See § 7.3). To qualify for SSI, a person must be extremely low income and disabled, blind, or 65 years or older. See 42 USC § 1382(a).

Authority for eligibility can be found in the Social Security Administration's (SSA's) Program Operations Manual System (POMS) at < https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/chapterlist!openview&restricttocategory=05 >. Aside from immigration status, an applicant's eligibility for SSI depends on the income and resources of the applicant, spouse (if any), and parents (if the applicant is under age 18). Eligibility may also depend on whether an immigrant has a sponsor, because the sponsor's income may be "deemed" to the immigrant, as discussed below. Unlike Title II's more generous exceptions, an individual is not eligible for SSI benefits for any month during all of which the individual is outside the United States. POMS SI 00501.410A.1, < https://secure .ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0500501410 >. SSI remains a safety-net benefit subject to public-charge scrutiny; however, given the restrictive status requirements for SSI, the relatively small pool of immigrant candidates eligible for SSI are often exempt from public-charge determinations. See § 7.1-2(a) for more information on the public-charge rule.

Much of the eligibility criteria for SSI references the date August 22, 1996, the effective date of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act of 1996 (Pub L 104-193, 110 Stat 2105), also known as welfare reform. Essentially, if a person was lawfully residing in the United States on or before that date, eligibility for SSI will be easier to establish. See POMS SI 00601.009, < https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/lnx/0500601009 >.

PRACTICE TIP: SSI uses the confusing concept of "qualified aliens" for eligibility purposes. See § 7.1-3. Meeting qualified-alien status does not mean an applicant is eligible for SSI. In addition, there are a few categories of immigrants who are not qualified aliens who may meet SSI eligibility. A noncitizen may be eligible for SSI if the noncitizen meets the requirements of the laws for noncitizens that went into effect on August 22, 1996. In general, beginning August 22, 1996, most noncitizens must meet two requirements to be potentially eligible for SSI: (1) be in a qualified-alien category, and (2) meet a condition that allows qualified aliens to get SSI. POMS SI 00502.100A.2,
< https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/lnx/0500502100 >; see 20 CFR § 416.202.

PRACTICE TIP: Certain categories of noncitizen Native Americans are eligible for SSI and are exempt from all other immigration-related eligibility requirements. These categories include certain American Indians born in Canada who were admitted to the United States under 8 USC § 1359 and noncitizen members of a federally recognized Indian tribe under section 4(e) of the

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