What's the current CalWORKs IRT income threshold for family of 4 in LA County?

i think its like $3200 or somthing but im not sure. mine changes all the time and im a family of 3. check your last notice of action they should have put it on there

For LA County CalWORKs, the Income Reporting Threshold (IRT) for a family of 4 is currently $3,469 per month (gross income before taxes or deductions). This amount was updated for 2025. You only need to report mid-period if your TOTAL household income goes above this amount. If the extra shifts won't push you over $3,469 gross for the month, you can wait until your next SAR7. Your specific IRT should be listed on your most recent Notice of Action. Each household's IRT is different based on family size and other factors, so always check your own paperwork to be sure.

They actually sent me the WRONG irt last time and i almost lost my benefits bc of it!!!! ALWAYS CALL to verify ur correct IRT!!!!! The papers they send are often full of mistakes but they still expect US to get everything perfect 🙄

The previous poster is correct that the LA County CalWORKs IRT for a family of 4 is $3,469/month gross income for 2025. However, there's one important detail to understand about Income Reporting Thresholds: Your personal IRT might be different from the standard amount if you have other income sources or special circumstances. Your exact IRT is always listed on your most recent Notice of Action letter. If you can't find your NOA, you can: 1. Check BenefitsCal (though IRTs aren't always displayed there) 2. Call your caseworker directly 3. Visit your local DPSS office Since you're close to your IRT, I'd recommend verifying your exact threshold. If you go over your IRT even by $1 and don't report it within 10 days, you could face an overpayment and possibly penalties.

The IRT includes ALL income combined - both earned (jobs) and unearned (child support, disability, etc.). So yes, your irregular child support would count toward your monthly total when determining if you've hit your IRT. And you're smart to double-check - having child support could potentially affect your specific threshold. When you have multiple income sources, it's even more important to know your exact IRT.

I had the same issue trying to confirm my IRT last month. Spent hours calling only to get disconnected. Finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an LA County worker in about 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/jzISHxCPLwE The service connected me directly to a caseworker who confirmed my IRT and explained exactly what I needed to report. Worth it to avoid the stress of wondering if I was going to mess up my benefits. They got me through faster than sitting on hold all day.

Yes, it actually works! It basically waits on hold for you and calls you back when a real person is on the line. Beats spending all day with your phone on speaker waiting to get through. I've used it twice now for CalWORKs questions.

I'm in LA County too, and I'm so confused about the whole IRT thing. Does anyone know if temporary income counts? Like if my mom gives me money to help with my kids' school supplies, does that count toward the IRT? And what happens if you go over just for one month but then go back under the next month? Will they cut off your benefits completely or just reduce them for that month? The whole system is so complicated and stressful 😭

Update: I finally got through to LA DPSS this afternoon! Our actual IRT is $3,402 (slightly lower than the standard amount). The worker explained it's because we get a small amount of child support that's already calculated in. She also said as long as we stay under this amount, we don't need to report until the next SAR7, but if we go over by even $1, we need to report within 10 days. Thanks everyone for your help!

Great job getting that clarified @Isabella Santos! It's so important to know your exact IRT, especially when you have multiple income sources. I'm dealing with a similar situation - my partner just started getting more hours and I was stressing about whether to report it. Your experience reminds me that I should call to double-check our specific threshold too. The fact that child support affects your individual IRT is something I didn't know. Thanks for sharing the update - it helps other families in similar situations!

This thread has been so helpful! I'm also in LA County with a family of 4 and had no idea that individual circumstances like child support could affect your specific IRT. I've been using the general $3,469 amount I found online, but now I realize I need to check my actual NOA or call to confirm. @Isabella Santos thanks for sharing your experience - it's reassuring to know that going over for just one month won't automatically terminate benefits as long as you report it properly. The 10-day rule is nerve-wracking when you're not sure of your exact threshold. I'm definitely going to use that Claimyr service @Diego Ramirez mentioned to get through to someone and verify our IRT before my next SAR7 is due. Has anyone else discovered their individual IRT was different from the standard amount? I'm curious how common this is.

This is such valuable information for LA County families! I'm also dealing with variable income and the IRT confusion. What really stands out to me from this thread is how individual circumstances can change your specific threshold - I had no idea about that. For anyone else reading this, I'd recommend keeping a simple spreadsheet to track your monthly income if you have variable earnings like extra shifts or irregular child support. That way you can easily see if you're approaching your IRT threshold. I started doing this after almost missing a reporting deadline last year. @Isabella Santos - thanks for sharing your final numbers! It's so helpful to see a real example of how child support affected your individual IRT. The $67 difference from the standard amount might seem small, but it could make or break whether someone needs to report mid-period. One more tip: I always take notes when I call DPSS with the worker's name, date, and what they told me. That way if there's any confusion later, I have documentation of what was said. The system can be frustrating but threads like this really help us support each other through it!

This has been such an informative thread! I'm also in LA County with a family of 4 and I've been making the mistake of assuming my IRT was exactly $3,469. Reading about @Isabella Santos discovering her actual IRT was $3,402 due to child support really opened my eyes - I get sporadic disability payments that might affect my threshold too. The spreadsheet idea from @Saleem Vaziri is genius! I'm definitely going to start tracking our monthly income that way. And @Diego Ramirez, thanks for mentioning Claimyr - I've wasted so many hours on hold with DPSS only to get disconnected. One thing I learned the hard way: even if you think you know your IRT, double-check it before making any income decisions. I almost turned down some freelance work last month because I thought it would put us over, but now I'm wondering if I was wrong about our exact threshold. Better to verify than miss out on legitimate income opportunities! Has anyone had experience with how seasonal work affects IRT reporting? My spouse might get a temporary holiday job and I'm not sure how to handle the income fluctuations.

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm also in LA County with a family of 4, and like many others here, I was just assuming my IRT was the standard $3,469. After reading about @Isabella Santos's experience with child support affecting her individual threshold, I realized I need to verify my own situation since we also receive some irregular support payments. The tip about using Claimyr to actually get through to a caseworker is a game-changer - I've literally spent entire afternoons on hold only to get disconnected. And @Saleem Vaziri's suggestion about keeping a spreadsheet to track variable income is so practical. I wish someone had told me this when I first started receiving CalWORKs! What really concerns me is how many of us are navigating this system without knowing our exact IRTs. It seems like such crucial information, but it's buried in paperwork that's easy to misplace. The fact that individual circumstances can change your threshold by hundreds of dollars (like @Giovanni Gallo mentioned being $200 higher) shows how important it is to get your specific number rather than relying on online estimates. Thanks to everyone for sharing their experiences - this is exactly the kind of real-world guidance that helps families avoid costly mistakes with their benefits!

This entire thread has been such a lifesaver! I'm also in LA County with a family of 4 and had been stressing about this exact same issue. My husband just got approved for overtime at his job and I've been losing sleep wondering if I need to report it immediately or wait for the next SAR7. Like so many others here, I was just using the general $3,469 amount I found online, but after reading about @Isabella Santos discovering her actual IRT was different due to child support, I realize I need to get my specific number confirmed. We don't have child support, but we do have a small amount of SSI for one of our kids that comes in monthly. The Claimyr tip from @Diego Ramirez sounds amazing - I'm definitely going to try that instead of spending hours on hold. And @Saleem Vaziri, your spreadsheet idea is brilliant! I've been trying to do the math in my head every time income changes and it's so stressful. It's honestly frustrating how much we have to figure out on our own just to avoid accidentally messing up our benefits, but I'm so grateful for communities like this where people share real experiences. You've all probably saved me from making a costly mistake by assuming I knew my correct IRT. Thank you!