Health & Benefits

TANF is short for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. The TANF program gives temporary cash assistance to pregnant women and families with one or more dependent children. The program is meant to help families as they become financially stable. 

TANF gives cash to help pay for:

• Food,

• Shelter,

• Utilities, and

• Other expenses.

Types of grants 

The TANF program will give temporary cash assistance for:

• Child-only grants,
• Parent or relative with children grants, and
• Crisis assistance.

Child-only grants 

Children can get TANF if they are living with a parent or relative. The non-parent adults in the assistance unit won't get TANF if they do not want to be included in the unit. Parents must be included unless an exception applies. Rules about time limits and work requirements don’t apply if only the child gets TANF. But, the families still must follow the rules for child support enforcement.

Children must live with caretaker relatives to get TANF. Caretaker relatives include those people who are related to the child by:

• Blood,
• Adoption, or
• Marriage.

Children who are living with non-relative caretakers can’t get TANF. But they might be able to get cash help under their township's Transitional or General Assistance Program. You can find your township on The Township Officials of Illinois website.  

Parent or relative with children grants 

Families with children can get TANF if at least one adult participates in or is exempt from work activities.

Crisis assistance 

You can get cash assistance if your family is in crisis. Any of the following is a crisis:

• Fire, flood, or natural disaster, 
• Domestic or sexual violence, 
• Eviction or a court order to leave your home, 
• Lost or stolen cash, or
• Overnight travel for medical care. 

If you are having a crisis, you may be eligible to get help for: 

• Rent, 
• Essential furniture such as beds, tables, and chairs, 
• Household supplies, and  
• Food and clothing. 

If you need to travel overnight for medical care, you may be eligible to receive assistance for lodging, transportation, and food. 

You can find information on crisis assistance allowances in the Crisis Assistance Table.

Eligibility requirements

You can apply for TANF and crisis assistance benefits if you are a U.S. citizen or qualifying non-citizen, you live in Illinois, and one of the following apply:

• You are pregnant (your spouse can also get benefits if the spouse lives with you),
• You have a child under age 18 who lives with you, or you have a child who is 19, lives with you, and is a full-time high school student,
• You are under 18 years old, you have a child, and you and your child live with your parent, a legal guardian, or an adult relative, or
• You are a parent who is a ward of the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), and you live in an adult-supervised arrangement as part of the DCFS Independent Living Program.

Even if you are homeless, you may qualify for TANF. 

Non-financial requirements 

There are non-financial requirements for getting TANF, including:

• You must have a valid Social Security Number (SSN) or have proof that you have applied for one,
• You and your family must live in Illinois. A permanent address is not required,
• You must be a blood relative, step-relative, adoptive relative, or spouse of the blood relative of the dependent child, 
• You must have primary responsibility for the care and supervision of the child. Temporary absence from the home may not affect you or the child’s eligibility for TANF, and
• You cannot be on strike in a labor union dispute.

Some people don’t need a valid SSN, including:

• Persons requesting or receiving help from the Moms and Babies Program,
• Newborns receiving assistance when they live with their mother who was Medicaid eligible when they were born, and
• Noncitizen children under age 19 who have certain non-immigrant visas or do not have any immigration documents and are requesting or receiving Family Health Plans.

Financial requirements 

DHS looks at your income to find out if you can get TANF and how much your payment will be. DHS will not look at any assets, such as bank accounts. 

The calculation is complicated. DHS will first look at your gross earned income from employment and subtract a set amount that depends on your household size. The amount is called the initial employment deduction. 

The leftover amount is compared to the TANF benefit amount. If the benefit is higher, DHS subtracts an earned income deduction and adds in any non-exempt unearned income, such as disability benefits or child support. This result is compared to the right payment level for the size of your household. If your income is more than the payment level, you can’t get TANF. 

Stepparent or grandparent income 

Income of a step-parent who lives with the unit is included in the unit. This is true even if the step-parent is not part of the unit. The TANF unit’s payment is lowered by a part of the step-parent’s income. The same goes for income of sponsors of non-citizens.

A grandparent can choose whether or not to be included in the TANF household. If the grandparent is included, then their income will be included, too.

Exempt income 

The following types of income do not count toward TANF eligibility:

• Non-cash gifts,
• Someone pays your bills directly to the company (but if they pay you and you pay the company, it counts as income), 
• Loans from a person who is not your relative,
• SNAP benefits,
• The first $100 of child support each month for one child, $200 for two or more children, 
• Child support payments someone gets to support a child not included in the assistance unit,
• Relocation assistance,
• Volunteer in Service to America stipend,
• Social Security death benefits,
• Supportive services payments,
• Up to $50 of small income every three months,
• LIHEAP assistance, 
• General Assistance payments to vendors,
• Disaster relief payment made by federal, state, or local government or by a disaster assistance group, and
• Earnings of minor students who receive assistance and attend school full-time.

Unless an exception applies, there is a 60-month limit on receiving TANF cash assistance. This includes TANF received in other states.