The numbers are smaller than most people think, and they vary by program

Immigrants use welfare programs at lower rates than U.S.-born citizens overall. The most commonly cited research, from the National Academies of Sciences, found that immigrants use cash welfare and food assistance at rates below those of native-born Americans. However, the exact percentage depends on which program you measure, which immigrant group you look at, how long they have lived in the country, and what state they live in. No single number describes "immigrants on welfare" because the reality is fragmented across dozens of programs with different rules.

The confusion often comes from mixing different things: legal status, time in the country, age, and program type all matter. A refugee who arrived last year may use different programs than a naturalized citizen who immigrated twenty years ago. A state with strict immigrant restrictions will show different numbers than a state with broader access. The data exists, but it is messier than headlines suggest.

Key Takeaways

  • Research from the National Academies of Sciences shows immigrants use cash welfare and food assistance at lower rates than U.S.-born citizens, though rates vary by state and program.
  • Immigrants who have lived in the country longer use welfare at lower rates than recent arrivals, and naturalized citizens use it at rates similar to or below native-born citizens.
  • Legal status matters: undocumented immigrants are barred from most federal welfare programs, and many legal immigrants face waiting periods before they can access benefits.
  • Elderly immigrants and refugees sometimes use certain programs at higher rates than the general population, but these groups are smaller and do not change the overall picture.
  • State rules vary widely — some states cover immigrants that federal law does not, while others restrict access further, so your state's numbers may differ from the national average.

What the major research actually found

The National Academies of Sciences conducted a comprehensive review of immigration and public programs in 2017. They found that immigrants overall used Supplemental Security Income (SSI, cash assistance for elderly and disabled people) and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps) at lower rates than native-born Americans. The difference was not huge, but it was consistent across most groups.

For Medicaid, the picture was more mixed. Immigrants used Medicaid at rates closer to or slightly below those of native-born citizens, depending on age and state. Immigrants were less likely to use Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF, the main cash welfare program) than native-born citizens. The research also found that immigrants' use of welfare declined the longer they had lived in the country — recent arrivals used programs at higher rates than immigrants who had been here ten or twenty years.

Naturalized citizens (immigrants who became U.S. citizens) used welfare at rates similar to or lower than native-born citizens. This matters because it shows that the difference is often about time and integration, not immigration itself.

Why legal status and waiting periods affect the numbers

Federal law bars undocumented immigrants from most welfare programs. They cannot receive TANF, SNAP, SSI, or most Medicaid benefits, with narrow exceptions for emergency medical care and some prenatal services. This means undocumented immigrants are automatically excluded from the statistics for most programs, which pushes the overall immigrant percentage down.

Legal immigrants face different rules depending on their status and how long they have been in the country. Most legal immigrants must wait five years before they can access federal SNAP or TANF benefits. Some states cover immigrants during that waiting period with state-funded programs, but many do not. Refugees and asylees are exempt from the five-year wait and can access benefits immediately, which is why refugee populations sometimes show higher welfare use in the first few years after arrival.

These rules mean that the immigrants most likely to use welfare — recent arrivals who are struggling — are often the ones most restricted from accessing it. The people who show up in welfare statistics are not a random sample of all immigrants; they are the subset who are legally permitted to receive benefits.

How state rules change what the data shows

States have significant power to set their own welfare rules within federal limits. Some states use state funds to cover immigrants during the five-year federal waiting period; others do not. Some states extend Medicaid to immigrants; others restrict it. These differences mean that welfare use rates for immigrants vary dramatically by location.

California, for example, has used state funds to cover immigrants in programs like SNAP and TANF during the federal waiting period. Texas has not. New York extended Medicaid to certain immigrant groups; Florida did not. A recent immigrant in California may show up in welfare statistics; the same person in Texas might not, even if they need the same help. This is why national percentages can be misleading — your state's numbers may be quite different.

Elderly and refugee immigrants sometimes use specific programs at higher rates

While immigrants overall use welfare at lower rates, some subgroups use certain programs at higher rates than the general population. Elderly immigrants, particularly those who arrived late in life and have limited work history in the U.S., use SSI at higher rates than elderly native-born citizens. Refugees in their first few years after arrival use SNAP and Medicaid at higher rates than the general immigrant population, though still often at rates similar to or below native-born citizens in the same income bracket.

These groups are real and their needs are genuine, but they are also smaller than the overall immigrant population. Elderly immigrants make up a small share of all immigrants, and refugees are a small share of all immigrants. Their higher use of specific programs does not change the fact that immigrants as a whole use welfare at lower rates than native-born citizens.

Why the perception does not match the data

Public perception of immigrant welfare use is often higher than the actual numbers. Several things drive this gap. First, visible welfare use — someone paying with a SNAP card, for example — may be more noticeable when the person appears to be an immigrant, even if the actual rate is lower. Second, political messaging sometimes emphasizes immigrant welfare use without context, which can leave a stronger impression than the underlying statistics. Third, people often conflate immigration with other concerns, like housing or job competition, and attribute those concerns to welfare use.

The data also does not capture everything people mean by "welfare." When people ask about immigrant welfare use, they sometimes mean all public benefits, including public schools and emergency rooms. Immigrants do use these services, and they pay taxes that fund them. But these are not typically counted as "welfare" in research on cash assistance and food programs.

What happens when you control for income and family size

One important detail: when researchers compare welfare use between immigrants and native-born citizens, they often do not control for income and family size. Immigrants, on average, have lower incomes than native-born citizens, which means they are more likely to be poor. Poor people use welfare at higher rates than wealthy people, regardless of where they were born. When researchers do control for income — comparing poor immigrants to poor native-born citizens — the differences in welfare use shrink further or disappear entirely.

This matters because it suggests that any difference in welfare use is driven more by immigrants' economic circumstances than by immigration itself. A poor person uses welfare because they are poor, not because they are an immigrant.

Frequently Asked Questions

What percentage of immigrants are on welfare?

There is no single percentage because it depends on which program, which immigrant group, and which state you measure. Research shows immigrants use cash welfare and food assistance at lower rates than native-born citizens overall, but rates vary. For example, immigrants might use SNAP at a rate of 8 to 10 percent compared to 10 to 12 percent for native-born citizens, but these numbers change by state and year.

Do undocumented immigrants use welfare?

Undocumented immigrants are barred from most federal welfare programs including TANF, SNAP, and SSI. They can access emergency medical care and some prenatal services. Some states provide additional benefits with state funds, but most do not. Because undocumented immigrants cannot access most programs, they do not appear in welfare statistics for those programs.

How long do legal immigrants have to wait before they can get welfare?

Federal law requires most legal immigrants to wait five years before they can access TANF, SNAP, and SSI. Refugees and asylees are exempt and can access benefits immediately. Some states use state funds to cover immigrants during the five-year wait, but many do not. Rules vary by state and by specific program.

Do immigrants use Medicaid at higher rates than citizens?

Immigrants use Medicaid at rates similar to or slightly below native-born citizens overall, though this varies by state and age. Elderly immigrants sometimes use Medicaid at higher rates than elderly native-born citizens. Immigrants in their first few years after arrival may use Medicaid at higher rates, but this typically declines over time.

Why do the numbers look different in different states?

States set their own welfare rules within federal limits. Some states cover immigrants during the five-year federal waiting period using state funds; others do not. Some states extend Medicaid to immigrants; others restrict it. These differences mean welfare use rates for immigrants vary significantly by location, so your state's numbers may differ from the national average.