New Hampshire FANF cash assistance for single parents and families (2026)

How 60% of the poverty guideline becomes a New Hampshire check

The payment standard does two jobs. It is the most a family can receive, and it is the income ceiling: a family whose countable net income reaches the standard gets nothing ⁠⁸. The table below applies the 60% rule to the 2026 poverty guidelines. Every result comes out to a whole dollar, so no rounding is needed ⁠¹⁠².

Each extra person adds $284 a month. These figures are calculated from rule He-W 658.02 and the 2026 guidelines ⁠¹⁠². DHHS’s own 2026 table in the Family Assistance Manual could not be opened for this guide, so confirm your amount on your notice of decision.

DHHS pays FANF twice a month. The money goes to a bank account by direct deposit or onto an EBT card that works at stores and ATMs ⁠³.

Four FANF categories, one payment standard

All four FANF categories use the same income rules and the same payment amounts. What differs is who must work and which time clock runs ⁠³⁠⁴. A child generally has to be under 18, or under 19 and in high school full time. The child must also lack a parent’s support or care because a parent died, is absent from the home or is incapacitated ⁠⁴⁠³.

• New Hampshire Employment Program (NHEP) covers families whose parent or caretaker relative is able to work. It carries the work requirement described below ⁠⁴.
• Family Assistance Program (FAP) has no work requirement. It covers parents age 60 or older, parents who get SSI, SSDI or a VA disability rating of 80% or more, and families whose NHEP counselor finds long-term barriers to employment ⁠¹⁰. FAP families do not lose cash when they reach 60 months, as long as they still qualify for FAP ⁠¹².
• Interim Disabled Parent (IDP) is for one- and two-parent families in which a parent is disabled and unable to work ⁠⁴.
• Families With Older Children (FWOC) covers a 19-year-old (up to age 20) who is a full-time high school or basic education student ⁠⁴.

Months on TANF (NHEP or FAP) count toward both the federal 60-month clock and New Hampshire’s own clock. IDP and FWOC months count only on the state clock ⁠⁴. TANF cases must assign child support rights to the state. IDP and FWOC cases do not have to assign them, but they must still pursue support ⁠⁴.

Countable income: the 20% test, then the 50% grant formula

DHHS figures income in two passes ⁠⁸:

1. Applicant test

   If you have not had FANF in the last 6 months, DHHS subtracts 20% of your gross earnings and any child or dependent care deduction. It then adds unearned income, including child support, and compares the total to the payment standard. Net income must be below the standard ⁠⁸.

2. Grant calculation

   If you pass, DHHS recalculates with a 50% earnings disregard and subtracts the result from the payment standard. The difference is your grant ⁠⁸. Families on FANF in any of the last 6 months skip step 1 and use only the 50% calculation ⁠⁸.

For example, take a parent with two children who earns $1,000 a month and has no other income or deductions. After the 20% disregard, $800 counts, which is under $1,366, so the family passes the applicant test. After the 50% disregard, $500 counts, and the grant would be $866 a month ($1,366 − $500) ⁠⁸⁠¹. Child support that the state keeps under the assignment is left out of the grant step ⁠⁸. If a sanction or income cut drops the grant below $10, the case closes ⁠¹¹.

Resource limits: $1,000 to get on, $5,000 once you are a recipient

The family’s countable personal and real property cannot exceed $1,000 at application. Once a family receives FANF, or has received it in at least one of the last 6 months, the limit is $5,000 ⁠⁷. That higher limit lets a working family on a small grant build some savings without losing eligibility.

NHEP hours, exemptions and the three sanction levels

Unless you are exempt, NHEP sets a weekly minimum ⁠⁹:

• Youngest child under 6: 20 hours a week, all in core activities such as job search, job readiness, on-the-job training, work experience (AWEP or CWEP) or vocational training.
• Youngest child 6 or older: 30 hours a week, with at least 20 in core activities.

Your employment plan can’t require more than 40 hours a week. Vocational training and post-secondary education each count for no more than 12 months in your lifetime. Parents under 20 without a diploma or its equivalent must attend education activities ⁠⁹.

You are temporarily exempt while caring for a child under age 1, but that exemption has a 12-month lifetime cap. You are also exempt if you have a health condition, or care for a household member who has one, after a Medical Exemption Unit review ⁠¹⁰. Most temporary exemptions end once you have received FANF for 39 months. After that, only a health condition or a baby under 13 weeks still exempts you ⁠¹⁰.

Sanctions increase step by step ⁠¹¹:

• Level 1. The grant drops by the noncompliant adult’s share of the payment standard.
• Level 2. After 2 more weeks of noncompliance, the reduced grant is cut by another third.
• Level 3. After 4 more weeks, it is cut by two-thirds.

After 4 weeks at level 3, or after 3 sanction months in any 12-month period, the whole family loses cash ⁠¹¹. You have 7 business days from the notice to claim and prove good cause. To end a sanction, you must fully participate for at least 2 consecutive weeks ⁠¹¹.

The 60-month clock and six-month hardship extensions

New Hampshire began counting FANF months on Oct. 1, 1996 ⁠³. Each adult can receive cash for 60 months in a lifetime. The limit does not apply to children whose caretaker relative is not on the grant ⁠³. When an adult reaches 60 months, the family must request a hardship extension. Each extension lasts up to 6 months and is based on one hardship at a time. You can request another extension if a hardship continues, but you must keep meeting NHEP requirements during the extension ⁠¹². If the case closes during an extension, the unused months are lost ⁠¹².

No diversion check: Emergency Assistance and NHEP obstacle payments instead

New Hampshire does not offer a lump-sum diversion payment in place of monthly FANF. Its one-time help is Emergency Assistance (EA), which pays the landlord, utility or fuel dealer directly and never the family ⁠¹³. You do not have to receive FANF to get EA, but your family’s income and resources must fall within FANF limits. You must also face homelessness, a utility shutoff, or a lack of heat, hot water or cooking fuel ⁠³⁠¹³.

You may keep $250 in cash resources, and anything above that must go toward the emergency. DHHS must send its decision within 15 working days and denies requests once the year’s funds run out ⁠¹³.

EA is denied if the crisis came from quitting a job of 20 or more hours a week without good cause in the last 60 days ⁠¹³. NHEP participants can also get employment-obstacle payments, as funding allows. These cover car insurance (up to $750), registration ($350), a driver’s license ($90), work clothing ($200) and personal care items ($25), with a combined cap of $750 per state fiscal year. Adult dental care not covered by Medicaid has a separate $1,500 cap ⁠¹³.

Applying through NH EASY or a DHHS District Office, step by step

1. Pick a filing method

   Apply online at NH EASY, in person at a District Office, by mailing BFA Form 800 or by voice-recorded signature. At a minimum, the application needs your name, address, signature and the programs you want. Your filing date is the business day DHHS receives it ⁠⁵.

2. Gather proof for everyone in the household

   You will need pay stubs, child support records, bank balances and records of other income, because DHHS counts both earned and unearned income ⁠⁸. Your resources must be within the $1,000 applicant limit ⁠⁷.

3. Complete the eligibility interview

   DHHS schedules an interview after you file. Raise any NHEP exemption at that point, such as caring for a baby under 1 or having a health condition ⁠¹⁰.

4. Cooperate with child support

   Name the absent parent, help establish paternity and keep any appointments with the Bureau of Child Support Services ⁠¹⁴.

5. Watch for the notice of decision

   DHHS must decide within 45 calendar days unless you delay a required step ⁠⁶.

6. Start NHEP

   Unless you are exempt or on FAP, meet your weekly hours and report them as your employment plan requires ⁠⁹.

7. Appeal in writing within 30 days

   Send it to DHHS, name the decision you dispute and attach the notice if you have it ⁠¹⁵.

Child support cooperation with BCSS

As a condition of FANF, parents and caretaker relatives must help the Bureau of Child Support Services (BCSS) locate the absent parent, establish paternity and obtain support. That includes appearing in court when asked. If you are in an NHEP or FAP case and refuse without good cause, you are sanctioned. In IDP and FWOC cases, refusal ends or prevents eligibility ⁠¹⁴. You are excused only if you claim and verify a good cause reason ⁠¹⁴. Parents who are not on FANF can apply to BCSS directly through the DHHS child support page listed under Verified resources.

For other help in this state, see all New Hampshire assistance guides or compare cash assistance across states.