SNAP Take-up Among Immigrant Families with Children

Social safety net programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), provide critical resources to help poor and low-income families in the United States meet their basic needs. In 2009, 24 percent of children from immigrant families lived below the poverty line, and 51 percent lived below twice the poverty line. Although child poverty rates are higher for children from immigrant families than from native families, there is a relatively low rate of SNAP take-up among immigrant families who are eligible for SNAP benefits. SNAP Take-up Among Immigrant Families with Children, a report from the National Center for Children in Poverty, examines the demographics of SNAP-eligible immigrant families, explores possible causes for low take-up rates, and makes policy suggestions for State program administrators to increase SNAP use among eligible immigrant families and their children.