Hawaii Social Security and SSI Benefits for a Grandchild in Kinship Care

Federal Benefits That May Apply to the Child You Are Raising

State programs like TANF, SNAP, and Med-QUEST are administered by Hawaii DHS, but the child in your care may also be eligible for federal Social Security or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits. These are paid by the Social Security Administration and follow federal rules regardless of which state you live in.

Social Security Survivor Benefits

If a parent is deceased and had enough work credits, the child may qualify for Social Security survivor benefits. A child can receive up to 75% of the deceased parent's benefit amount. Eligibility generally lasts until age 18, or until under age 19 if the child is a full-time student at an elementary or secondary school.

A child legally adopted by a grandparent may qualify as their child under SSA rules. For an unadopted grandchild, eligibility generally requires that the child began living with the grandparent before age 18 and received at least half of their support during the year before the grandparent became entitled to benefits or died; the child's natural or adoptive parents must have been deceased or disabled at the relevant time. Legal custody alone does not establish eligibility.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) for Children

SSI is a needs-based program for children with qualifying disabilities. To be eligible, the child must have a physical or mental condition that results in marked and severe functional limitations, and the condition must last or be expected to last at least 12 months. Household income and resources are considered (a process called "deeming"), but the rules for who counts as a parent for deeming purposes depend on the living arrangement.

SSA may deem income from an under-18 child's natural or adoptive parent to the child; if the child lives with that parent and the parent's spouse, the stepparent's income may also be deemed. A grandparent's income is not deemed as parental income solely because the grandparent is the child's legal guardian.

SSI benefits in Hawaii include the federal payment standard plus a state supplement. The combined amount changes annually.

How Social Security Income Affects TANF

If the child receives Social Security or SSI, those payments count as the child's income in a TANF child-only case. BESSD subtracts the child's Social Security income from the maximum monthly TANF grant. For example, if the child receives $200 in survivor benefits and the one-child TANF maximum is $582, the TANF grant would be reduced to $382.

SSI and TANF can be received simultaneously, but each dollar of SSI reduces the TANF payment dollar-for-dollar.

Social Security and SSI do not affect SNAP calculations in the same way — SNAP evaluates the entire household's income, not just the child's, and applies its own deductions.

Applying for Social Security Benefits

Contact the Social Security Administration directly. The nearest SSA office to most Hawaii residents is at 300 Ala Moana Boulevard in Honolulu, but you can apply by phone (1-800-772-1213) or online at ssa.gov for some benefit types.

Bring the child's birth certificate, the deceased parent's Social Security number, and your own identification. For SSI disability claims, medical records documenting the child's condition will be needed.

For a broader walkthrough of how federal benefits, state TANF, SNAP, and Med-QUEST interact in a kinship household — including income calculation worksheets — see the Hawaii kinship financial help guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does a grandchild's Social Security income affect my own Social Security check? No. The child's benefits are separate from your retirement or disability benefits. One does not reduce the other.

Can a child receive both SSI and Med-QUEST? Yes. SSI recipients are generally categorically eligible for Medicaid. In Hawaii, the child would be enrolled in Med-QUEST coverage alongside the SSI benefit.

The child's parent is alive but incarcerated. Are survivor benefits available? No. Survivor benefits require that the parent be deceased. If the parent is incarcerated, the child may still qualify for SSI based on disability or for TANF child-only through BESSD.

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