Will financial aid disqualify me from CalWORKs? Husband on unemployment, family of 4 needs temporary help

Financial aid is actually exempt income for CalWORKs as long as you're using it for education expenses! The portions you use for tuition, books, transportation to school, etc. definitely won't count against you. Your husband's unemployment WILL count as income though, which will reduce your cash aid amount. For a family of 4 with one parent receiving unemployment, you'd probably qualify for partial CalWORKs benefits - maybe around $400-600 depending on the unemployment amount. CalFresh would be separate and you'd likely qualify for that too. Since you only need it temporarily, you should definitely apply. The application process through BenefitsCal.com is pretty straightforward these days.

they gonna ask for ALL ur financial records so b ready!!! my sister got denied cuz she didnt report her boyfriends income right and they made her pay everything back plus penalties!! make sure u tell them EVERYTHING about ur husbands unemployment and ur financial aid or theyll come after u later!!

Your financial aid is NOT counted as income for CalWORKs eligibility if it's used for educational expenses. This is specified in the CDSS regulations. However, if you use any portion for living expenses outside education costs, that portion might count. Regarding your husband's unemployment: This IS countable income and will reduce your grant amount. The basic formula is that about the first $450 of earned income is disregarded (the exact amount varies based on family size), but unearned income like unemployment has a much smaller disregard. For a family of 4 in 2025, the maximum CalWORKs grant is around $1,340 if you have no other income. With unemployment, it would be reduced approximately dollar-for-dollar after any applicable disregards. Regarding your previous overpayment: This shouldn't prevent you from being eligible now, but if you still owe money, they might recover a small percentage from your new benefits. Definitely apply - the worst they can say is no, and CalFresh eligibility is determined separately so you might qualify for that even if CalWORKs is reduced significantly by the unemployment income.

I went thru something similar last year with school and CalWORKS!! My financial aid didn't count against me but I had to bring proof that it was for school stuff. Just make sure u document EVERYTHING and keep all your receipts for books and supplies!!! They will ask about every penny!! Also make sure to tell them it's only temporary assistance you need. They'll still make you do the Welfare to Work stuff if ur husband isn't exempt, even if it's just for a couple months. My worker tried to make me do job search activities even tho I was in school full time and had a job lined up right after graduation!!

be super careful about ur unemployment amounts... they will CHECK everything and if u report wrong amounts they'll hit u with an overpayment. happened to my cousin and it was a total nightmare getting it fixed. just report exactly what he gets every 2 weeks and don't round up or down. make sure to apply for CalFresh too, that's separate from cash aid and u might get more from that program depending on expenses. and ask about the diaper stipend if ur kids are still in diapers.

I've been trying to reach someone at the CalWORKs office for WEEKS about a similar situation with unemployment and financial aid. The phone lines are absolutely impossible - either constant busy signals or being on hold for 3+ hours before getting disconnected. I finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to a live person at my county office in under 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/jzISHxCPLwE It was the only way I could actually talk to someone to get my specific questions answered about how my husband's unemployment would affect our CalWORKs grant. Saved me so much frustration!

wait they make u report unemployment every time it comes??? i thought u just report on the SAR7 form every 6 months??? my worker never told me to report each payment!!!

With your husband getting about $1,100 biweekly from unemployment (so around $2,200/month), you would likely still qualify for some CalWORKs, but it would be a reduced amount. Since unemployment is unearned income, they count most of it against your grant. After accounting for the unemployment, you might receive around $250-400 in CalWORKs for a family of 4, depending on your county's specific grant amounts and any other factors. It's not a lot, but combined with CalFresh benefits (which could be $500+ for a family of four with your income), it can definitely help during these two months. And yes, the diaper stipend is $30 per month per child under 3 years old who is on CalWORKs. You need to request it specifically though - many workers don't mention it if you don't ask!

DONT FORGET they'll also ask for a CHILD SUPPORT form!! u have to agree to let them go after ur kids father for child support if he's not in the home. I forgot about this an they almost denied my case!!