Financial Help for Grandparents Raising Grandchildren in Kentucky

About 48,000 children in Kentucky live in kinship care. Many of their grandparents are retired, on fixed incomes, and suddenly paying for a child they did not expect to raise. The money the state makes available is not trivial — but it is scattered across agencies that do not talk to each other, under program names that sound like they are for someone else.

Here is every major financial benefit a Kentucky grandparent raising a grandchild can access, organized by what the money is for.

Monthly Cash: K-TAP Child-Only

The Kentucky Transitional Assistance Program (K-TAP) provides monthly cash grants for children living with a relative caregiver. The critical rule: your income does not count. DCBS evaluates only the child's own income — child support, survivor benefits — not your Social Security, pension, or savings.

Payments for a child with zero income: $372/month for one child, $450 for two, up to $964 for seven or more. No 60-month time limit. No work requirements.

Apply at kynect.ky.gov. You do not need a custody order.

Food: SNAP

Kentucky SNAP uses Broad-Based Categorical Eligibility: the gross income limit is 200% of the Federal Poverty Level with no asset test. A two-person household (you and one grandchild) qualifies with gross income under $3,608/month, and the maximum monthly allotment is $562.

If you are 60 or older, you are exempt from all SNAP work requirements. Unreimbursed medical expenses over $35/month are deductible from income.

Health Coverage: Medicaid and KCHIP

Children's Medicaid covers children up to 154% FPL. KCHIP extends coverage up to 218% FPL. With those thresholds, most kinship children qualify.

If you do not claim the child as a tax dependent, MAGI non-filer rules apply — only the child's direct income is evaluated. Apply through kynect alongside K-TAP and SNAP; one application screens for all three.

Childcare: CCAP

If you are a single caregiver, you must work an average of 20 hours per week or attend school full-time; in a two-adult household, the adults must work a combined average of 40 hours per week, with at least 5 hours from the second adult. Initial household income must be at or below 160% FPL. K-TAP child-only payments are excluded from the income calculation.

If DCBS placed the child with you as a relative caregiver, CCAP is authorized directly without income or work requirements.

One-Time Emergency Grants

The Relative Placement Support Benefit (922 KAR 1:400) provides a one-time grant for bedding, clothing, and safety items when DCBS places a child in your home. This requires an active child welfare case.

Outside the child welfare system, local Community Action Agencies operate LIHEAP for heating and cooling assistance (households under 200% FPL), and many maintain discretionary emergency funds for utility cut-off prevention, emergency housing, and clothing. These vary by county.

Older Caregiver Support

If you are 55 or older and raising a child age 18 or under, Kentucky's Area Agencies on Aging and Independent Living (AAAIL) operate Family Caregiver Support Programs funded under Title III-E of the Older Americans Act. Some younger caregivers may qualify if their income is under 150% FPL. Services include annual financial vouchers or grants for clothing, school supplies, legal expenses, and respite care, plus caregiver counseling and support groups. Local programs may also provide gap-filling financial assistance for emergency items. These are supportive services and expense reimbursements, not automatic monthly cash stipends.

Where to Start

Apply for K-TAP, SNAP, and Medicaid through a single kynect.ky.gov application. Check every program box — DCBS screens for all programs at once, and qualifying for one often fast-tracks another.

For a complete walkthrough of every program, application, and document checklist, organized by your care arrangement (informal, guardianship, or DCBS placement), see the Financial Help for Grandparents and Relatives Raising a Child in Kentucky guide.

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