Temporary Cash Assistance (TCA) General Overview The TCA program provides cash assistance to families with children under the age of 18 or under age 19 if full time secondary (high school) school students, that meet the technical, income, and asset requirements. The program helps families become self-supporting while allowing children to remain in their own homes. Pregnant women may also receive TCA, either in the third trimester of pregnancy if unable to work, or in the 9th month of pregnancy. Parents, children and minor siblings who live together must apply together. Eligibility Rules A person must pass all eligibility rules to get TCA benefits. Some of the eligibility rules are: Time Limits - Cash assistance is limited to a lifetime total of 48 months as an adult (except for child only cases, which have no time limit). Work Rules - Some people must participate in work activities unless they meet an exemption. Regional Workforce Boards provide work activities and services needed to get or keep a job. Income and Deductions - Gross income must be less than 185% of the Federal Poverty level and countable income can’t be higher than the payment standard for the family size. Individuals get a $90 deduction from their gross earned income. Individuals receiving benefits also get an additional earned income deduction as an incentive to get and keep a job. Citizenship - Individuals must be U.S. citizens or qualified non-citizens. Residency - Individuals must live in the state of Florida. SSN - Individuals must provide a Social Security Number or proof they have applied for one. Assets - A family's countable assets must be equal to or less than $2,000. Licensed vehicles needed for individuals subject to the work requirement may not exceed a combined value of $8,500. Relationship - A child must be living in the home maintained by a parent or a relative who is a blood relative of the child. Child Support Cooperation - The parent or the caretaker relative of the children must cooperate with child support enforcement to identify and locate the parent(s) who do not live in the child's home, to prove a child's legal relationship to their parent and to get the court to order child support payments. Immunization - Children under age 5 must be up to date with childhood immunizations (shots). Learnfare - Children age 6 to 18 must attend school and parents/caretakers must attend school conferences. TCA - Relative Caregiver Program This program provides monthly cash assistance to relatives who meet eligibility rules and have custody of a child under age 18 who has been court ordered dependent by a Florida court and placed in their home by the Department of Children and Families Child Welfare/Community Based Care (CW/CBC) contracted provider. The monthly cash assistance amount is higher than the Temporary Cash Assistance for one child, but less than the amount paid for a child in the foster care program. Only the child's income and assets are counted when determining eligibility and payment amounts. Payments are based on the child's age and any countable income. Monthly payments for children with no countable income are as follows: Age 0 through 5 - $242 per child Age 6 through 12 - $249 per child Age 13 through 17 - $298 per child Eligibility Rules Only the child must pass all eligibility rules to get Relative Caregiver benefits. Some of the eligibility rules are: Citizenship - Individuals must be US citizens or qualified non-citizens. Residency - Individuals must live in the state of Florida. SSN - Child must have a social security number or prove they have applied for one. Assets - Child's countable assets must be equal to or less than $2000. Relationship - Relative caregiver must be within the specified degree of relationship to the parent or stepparent of the child. Income - Child's net countable income cannot exceed the payment standard for the child's age(see payment amounts above). Child Support Cooperation - Relative caregiver must cooperate with child support enforcement to identify and locate the parents, to prove a child's legal relationship to their parent and to get the court order child support payments. Immunizations - Children under age 5 must be current with immunizations. Learnfare - Child age 6 to 18 must attend school.