Kentucky K-TAP Child-Only Grant for Grandparents and Relatives

The single most important thing a grandparent raising a grandchild in Kentucky needs to understand about K-TAP is this: your income does not count. Not your Social Security. Not your pension. Not your savings. Not the house you live in.

Under 921 KAR Chapter 2, when a non-needy relative caregiver applies for K-TAP on behalf of a child, the assistance unit includes only the child. The caregiver's personal income and assets are completely excluded from the eligibility determination.

This trips up many Kentucky grandparents. They assume "welfare" means the whole household gets means-tested, so they never apply. Meanwhile, the child they are raising out of pocket qualifies for a monthly cash grant that could be putting $372 or more into the household budget.

Who Qualifies as a Relative Caregiver

K-TAP child-only grants are available to grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, nieces, nephews, and step-relatives of similar degree. The qualifying relationships are defined by blood, marriage, or adoption under 921 KAR 2:006.

Family friends — sometimes called fictive kin — who lack a blood, marriage, or adoption tie to the child do not qualify for K-TAP child-only. Fictive kin need a DCBS placement and foster care licensing route to access monthly cash support.

The child must be deprived of parental support. That means a parent who is deceased, absent (voluntarily or involuntarily, including incarceration), physically or mentally incapacitated, or unemployed.

How the Income Exclusion Works

When you apply as a non-needy caretaker relative, DCBS evaluates only the child's income:

• Excluded entirely: your wages, retirement, Social Security, SSDI, SSI, pensions, personal savings
• Counted for the child: court-ordered child support paid to the child, Social Security survivor benefits in the child's name, any other unearned income belonging to the child

The countable liquid asset limit is $10,000, but that applies to the child's assets. Your personal belongings, primary home, primary vehicles, and individual development accounts up to $15,000 are all excluded.

No 60-Month Time Limit

Standard TANF cases carry a 60-month cumulative lifetime limit. Child-only K-TAP cases are exempt from this limit entirely under 921 KAR 2:006 Section 16. They are also exempt from mandatory work registration, job search requirements, and work participation hours under the Kentucky Works Program.

Your employment status, retirement, or disability has no bearing on the child's eligibility or continued receipt of the grant.

Child Support Cooperation

There is one requirement that catches people off guard. K-TAP recipients must cooperate with the DCBS Division of Child Support Enforcement to identify the child's parents and pursue support obligations. If you refuse without an approved Good Cause Exemption, the grant is permanently reduced by 25%.

If cooperating with child support enforcement would put the child or you in danger — domestic violence, forcible rape, incest — you can file Form PA-22 for a Good Cause Exemption. DCBS must accept law enforcement records, court protective orders, shelter statements, medical records, or sworn affidavits. If no corroborative evidence is available, DCBS conducts a confidential investigation without contacting the absent parent.

How to Apply

Apply at kynect.ky.gov or visit your local county DCBS office. The application asks for the child's identity documents, your proof of relationship, and verification of the parent's absence. Standard processing takes up to 30 calendar days.

Our Financial Help for Grandparents and Relatives Raising a Child in Kentucky guide includes a step-by-step application walkthrough, a document checklist so nothing is missing on day one, and a benefit calculation worksheet so you know what to expect before the letter arrives.

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