NC ePASS Application: How to Apply for Benefits for a Grandchild You're Raising

What ePASS Lets You Do

ePASS is North Carolina's online portal for applying to Food and Nutrition Services (SNAP), Medicaid, and Work First Family Assistance — all from one screen. If you're a grandparent or relative raising a child, you can submit one application that covers the child's cash help, food benefits, and health coverage without driving to the county DSS office.

The portal is at epass.nc.gov. You can apply online, upload documents through an enhanced account, and check the status of a pending application.

Enhanced Account vs. Anonymous Application

ePASS offers two paths, and picking the right one matters.

An anonymous application lets you submit without creating a login. You cannot track the application or return to an incomplete application in ePASS; uploading documents requires an enhanced account.

An enhanced account requires a login. It lets you save an incomplete application, upload verification documents, and track application status online.

For kinship caregivers who may need to apply for multiple programs and recertify annually, the enhanced account is worth the two extra minutes of setup.

What You Need Before You Start

Gather these for the child before opening ePASS:

• The child's full legal name, date of birth, and Social Security number
• Proof of your relationship (birth certificates linking you to the child, or a sworn caregiver statement)
• Proof the child lives with you (school records, a letter from the school, utility bills)
• Any income or countable resources in the child's name (Social Security survivor benefits, child support payments, trust distributions, or a bank account)
• Your own income information (required for FNS/SNAP — the child-only Work First grant excludes your income, but food stamps count the whole household)

Upload readable document copies through your enhanced account.

Walking Through the Application

After logging in to your enhanced account, select the programs you want. You can apply for Work First, FNS, and Medicaid on the same ePASS application.

The form asks about household members. Add the child as a household member. When it asks about your income, answer honestly — DSS will separate what counts for each program. Your retirement income doesn't affect the child-only cash grant but does affect the food stamp calculation.

At the document upload step, attach the records you have. DSS has 45 calendar days from receipt of the signed application to process Work First and Medicaid, and 30 days for FNS (7 days for expedited FNS applications).

After submission, ePASS gives you a confirmation number. Save it. Work First requires an eligibility interview; county DSS offices permit phone interviews for kinship caregivers upon request.

If ePASS Doesn't Work for You

Not everyone is comfortable applying online, and that's fine. You can also apply by walking into your county DSS office during business hours, or by mailing, faxing, or dropping off the program-specific paper forms. Work First uses Form DSS-8124, FNS uses Form DSS-8200, and Medicaid uses Form DHB-2000.

North Carolina has 100 county DSS offices, and the child's application goes to the county where you live, not where the child's parents live.

What Happens After You Submit

Your county DSS assigns a caseworker who reviews the application. For Work First, the caseworker schedules the required eligibility interview; county DSS offices permit phone interviews for kinship caregivers upon request.

The caseworker determines eligibility for each program separately.

If you're approved, FNS benefits load monthly onto an EBT card, while Work First cash is issued by EBT or direct deposit. Check the Medicaid decision notice for the coverage effective date.

Our North Carolina Kinship Financial Help Guide walks through each program's eligibility rules, the documents DSS actually needs, and what to do when a caseworker asks for something you don't have. It's the step-by-step companion to an ePASS application.

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