Louisiana SNAP Benefits for Grandparents Raising a Grandchild

How SNAP Counts Your Household

The core SNAP rule: people who live together and buy and prepare food together are one household. When a grandparent raises a grandchild, that means the grandparent's income usually gets counted alongside the child's when determining how much the household receives.

Louisiana uses an expanded gross income limit of 200% of the federal poverty level. For a two-person household (one grandparent and one grandchild), that is roughly $3,394 per month in gross income. A three-person household has a limit of about $4,278.

The Separate-Household Exception

There is an important carve-out. If the grandparent is not the child's biological or adoptive parent, and the grandchild purchases and prepares food separately from the grandparent, the child may be evaluated as a separate SNAP household. In that scenario, only the child's income counts; the child must still meet SNAP eligibility rules for a household of one.

This exception matters for grandparents whose own income puts the combined household above the 200% FPL threshold. It requires genuinely separate food preparation, not just a claim on the application.

How Cash Benefits Affect SNAP

If you receive FITAP or KCSP payments for the grandchild, those count as unearned income in the SNAP allotment calculation. How much they affect your allotment depends on the household's income and deductions.

Key Deductions That Lower Your Countable Income

Louisiana SNAP allows several deductions that can pull your net income below the threshold even when gross income looks high:

• Standard Utility Allowance: $478 per month
• Excess shelter deduction: up to $769 per month (uncapped if anyone in the household is 60 or older or disabled)
• Standard medical deduction: $161 per month for elderly or disabled members with out-of-pocket medical expenses above $35.01
• Dependent care deduction: eligible childcare expenses

For a grandparent over 60 with a mortgage and medical expenses, these deductions can cut hundreds from countable income.

WIC for Younger Children

If the grandchild is under five, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provides targeted food packages — infant formula, cereal, fruits, vegetables, milk, eggs. Legal custody is not required, and if the household already receives SNAP, FITAP, or Medicaid, WIC income eligibility is automatic.

SUN Bucks in Summer

Children enrolled in SNAP, FITAP, KCSP, or income-based Medicaid automatically receive SUN Bucks — a $120 per-child summer benefit loaded onto the existing EBT card. No separate application is needed unless the child attends a Community Eligibility Provision school and is not auto-enrolled, in which case an application is due by August 20 at louisiana.summerebtapp.com.

How to Apply

SNAP applications go through the CAFÉ portal at cafe.dcfs.la.gov or by calling 1-888-LAHELP-U. Expedited processing (within 7 days) is available for households with very low income or resources. Standard processing takes up to 30 days.

Bring proof of income, residency, the child's identity documents, and household expenses (rent/mortgage, utilities, medical bills). Save your confirmation number — a saved draft on CAFÉ does not count as a submitted application.

The Louisiana Kinship Financial Help guide covers SNAP alongside every other program available to kinship caregivers, with a document preparation checklist so you are not scrambling to find paperwork at the last minute.

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