Written by a parent, not a doctor. Nothing here is medical advice.

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Idaho program

Monthly cash for a relative raising a child

Idaho offers a child-only cash grant for a grandparent or other relative raising a child.

What it is

Idaho offers a child-only cash grant for a grandparent or other relative raising a child.

A relative does not always need the same income test as a parent seeking family cash assistance. For a child-only application, Idaho's rule counts the child's income. The office still needs to check the relationship and other eligibility rules.

Eligibility rules
  • This route is for a relative caring for a child who is not their own and applying for the child only.
  • Only the child's own income and savings count. You do not need a court guardianship order; a birth certificate or other record showing the relationship is usually enough.
What you get
  • Up to $309 a month in cash assistance.
  • The relative's income and resources are left out of a qualifying child-only request.
What the help covers
  • The maximum grant is the same $309 amount as the family cash grant, with a different income test.
If you decide to apply
  1. Ask your social worker to compare a child-only request with a request including the caretaker.
  2. For that review, have relationship records and the child's income, resources and other benefit information ready.

Idaho Department of Health and Welfare: 1-877-456-1233 · Official page ↗

After you ask
  • After approval, TAFI cash can be paid by direct deposit or an EBT cash account. Idalink handles applications and case information. The office confirms the decision deadline and whether adult work or lifetime-limit conditions apply to your child-only request.
Good to know

A child-only application is different from seeking assistance for yourself too. The office needs to know which help you are requesting.

Other details
  • Requesting help for the caretaker too uses different rules. The office needs to know which request you are considering before it calculates assistance.
Official sources
Ask your social worker

“Would a child-only grant fit my relationship to this child, and what income or savings would matter? Could you help me compare the conditions and apply if it fits?”

Why I’m asking: I want the office to use the right rules for a relative raising a child.

More background and detailed requirements
Additional program information and published rules

Who does what

The three parts, side by side. The agency decides; nobody on this page does.

You

Say plainly that the application is for the child only.

Your social worker

The office applies the child-only income rule.

The care team

Nothing.

Who decides
The Department of Health and Welfare.
Ask the agency
“I am a relative raising this child and I am applying for the child only, so only the child's income should be counted.”

How to apply

First step: Apply on idalink for the child only.

  1. Apply on idalink and say you are applying for the child only.
  2. If a worker counts your own income, ask for the caretaker-relative rule in writing.
  3. Ask in the same call about food help and the child's Medicaid.

Official application / program page ↗

Where it starts: Apply on idalink, saying clearly that you are a relative applying for the child only.

What to gather

  • Proof you are the child's relative and carer
  • The child's own income, if any

How long: Not published.

What a yes looks like

Cash paid by direct deposit or EBT after approval; idalink handles applications and case information.

What a no looks like, and the next move

If your own income was counted, ask which rule was applied and appeal by the date on the letter.

Watch out

  • Two Idaho pages word the income rule differently. The current rule says only the child's income is counted; ask for it by name.
  • It is the same $309 maximum as the family grant, so it is small money that arrives every month.

The numbers and the rules

The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 11, 2026.

What it is worth

Up to $309 a month for a relative raising a child, with only the child's income counted.

  • $309 — Maximum monthly relative caretaker grant

Legal protection: When a caretaker relative applies solely for a relative child, only the child's income is counted

What it costs the family: Nothing to apply.

The eligibility facts, as published

Who
A relative caring for a child who is not their own, applying for the child only
Income
Only the child's income is counted
Resources
For a qualifying child-only request, the child’s income and resources count, not the relative caretaker’s income and resources. Relationship and other payments still need review.
Unknowns
Payment instructions, resource treatment and the decision deadline were NOT FOUND.

Decisions this site cannot make: Department of Health and Welfare eligibility determination

Expect friction on: Two official pages word the income rule differently, so a worker may count the relative's income unless asked not to

The trap: Idaho's general application page says the relative's income and resources 'may not' count while the dedicated page says they do not count, and the current rule says only the child's income is counted when a caretaker relative applies solely for the child. Quote the rule if a worker counts your pension.

Where I read this

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