Oregon TANF cash assistance for single parents and families (2026)

Oregon’s TANF payment standards and income limits by family size

ODHS checks your income against four standards, all based on the number of people in the need group. The table shows the figures ODHS gave the Legislature in March 2025 ⁠². The $506 payment standard for three people matches what ODHS’s TANF page shows in October 2026 ⁠¹.

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

For a household larger than 10, each additional person adds $110 to the payment standard and $220 to the ELI ⁠². OAR 461-155-0030 sets a separate table for need groups with no adult (child-only cases), which ODHS did not include in this chart ⁠⁵.

How the 50% earnings deduction and the ELI shape a grant

For a new applicant, ODHS runs two tests ⁠³:

1. Countable income test

   Your household’s countable income has to be below the countable income limit, which is $616 for three people. If it equals or exceeds the limit, you are not eligible ⁠³.

2. Adjusted income test

   Next, ODHS subtracts the earned income deduction, which is 50% of each worker’s gross earnings, including self-employment ⁠⁴. The amount left is your adjusted income, and it has to be below the adjusted income limit ($485 for three) ⁠³.

Your grant is the payment standard minus your adjusted income. If that comes to less than $10, no grant is paid ⁠³⁠¹¹.

Families who already receive TANF and have earnings get a more generous test. Under the exit limit increase (ELI), their countable income only has to stay below the ELI, which is $1,012 for three people. The ELI also applies when a family whose TANF closed because of earnings files again within 30 days ⁠⁵. In an example where wages are the only income, a parent with two children who earns $800 a month cannot qualify as a new applicant because $800 is above $616. A parent with the same $800 who is already on TANF stays eligible, has adjusted income of $400 and gets $106 a month ($506 minus $400).

For initial eligibility, ODHS counts child support as income, apart from a disregard of up to $50 per child (no more than $200 per family). That includes support that will be assigned to the state once TANF is approved ⁠¹³.

The $10,000 resource cap and Oregon’s clothing payments

ODHS told legislators that since the 2022 session, families with resources up to $10,000 can apply for TANF ⁠². The same 2022 package created a children’s clothing allowance and restricted sanctions. ODHS calls the clothing allowance the largest increase in cash assistance since 1996 ⁠². As long as the family stays eligible, ODHS puts $270 for clothing on the family’s EBT card in May, August and November ⁠¹⁠².

Pre-TANF: what happens in the first 30 days

If your application shows that you appear to meet TANF rules, you start in Pre-TANF. Pre-TANF lasts no more than 30 days after your filing date, and it is not supposed to delay TANF ⁠⁸. In this period:

• each adult in the need group who is authorized to work completes an employability screening, and at least one adult attends a JOBS overview. If the screening shows a possible barrier, ODHS offers further screening at no cost ⁠⁸;
• ODHS can pay basic living expenses, up to 100% of your payment standard, along with support payments listed in your case plan ⁠⁸;
• Pre-TANF closes early if you find a job, start a JOBS Plus placement or no longer qualify. If it closes because you did not follow the plan or because employment is unlikely, TANF can still open if you meet all TANF rules ⁠⁸.

JOBS family coaches and Oregon’s 25% sanction cap

Most TANF parents take part in the Job Opportunity and Basic Skills (JOBS) program ⁠¹. In March 2025, ODHS reported 458 family coaches carrying an average of 54 cases each. Each district decides which JOBS activities it offers ⁠². Federal rules treat a parent as “engaged” at 30 hours a week of activity. ODHS says JOBS has shifted toward family well-being, with services such as job search, life skills, GED classes, vocational training (limited to 12 months) and mental health or substance use treatment ⁠². JOBS support payments can cover real costs. As of Feb. 12, 2025, $22.9 million had been paid during the 2023-25 biennium, with 61% going to housing and utilities and 25% to car costs and gas ⁠².

If a parent in JOBS does not follow the case plan and has no good cause, ODHS must first offer a re-engagement process. Only after that can it impose a disqualification ⁠¹². Oregon caps the penalty: only 25% of the grant can be withheld, and the cut rises in four steps of 6.25%, 12.5%, 18.75% and 25% ⁠¹². When a disqualification ends, any later one starts again at the first step ⁠¹².

Oregon’s 60-month clock and its extensions

Oregon uses the federal 60-month lifetime limit and counts months of TANF received in any state ⁠⁶. Oregon does not cut off the whole family when a parent reaches 60 months. Instead, the parent is removed from the benefit group, and the children can keep receiving TANF ⁠⁶.

The parent can get an extension past 60 months if one of the following keeps them from earning above ODHS income limits ⁠⁷:

• risk of domestic violence, or being subjected to battery or extreme cruelty;
• a learning disability, a mental health condition, or an alcohol or drug problem;
• a disability, or a child with a disability;
• being deprived of needed medical care.

A licensed or certified professional must document a learning disability, a mental health or substance condition, a disability, or a child’s disability ⁠⁷. TANF can also continue for a short time if the parent is finishing an approved JOBS Plus agreement, or if the parent is in a situation expected to last less than 12 months that makes working unreasonable ⁠⁷.

TA-DVS and Employment Payments: Oregon’s one-time cash

ODHS does not list a lump-sum diversion grant among its cash programs. Besides Pre-TANF’s basic living expense payments, Oregon offers two targeted payments ⁠¹⁠⁸.

Temporary Assistance for Domestic Violence Survivors (TA-DVS) is for a parent or relative caring for a minor child, or a pregnant person, who meets TANF income limits and is at risk of domestic violence ⁠⁹. It pays up to $3,200 during a 90-day period. The limit was $1,200 for periods that ended before Aug. 11, 2024 ⁠¹⁰. ODHS usually pays the landlord or vendor directly. Payments can cover deposits, move-in rent, new locks, cameras and replacing essentials left behind ⁠⁹⁠¹⁰. TA-DVS cannot pay legal fees, fines or anything that benefits the abuser ⁠¹⁰. You can receive it at the same time as TANF, and you can reapply after a 90-day period ends ⁠¹⁰. ODHS has to address immediate safety needs within eight working hours of getting the application and make a decision within 16 working hours of a completed application ⁠¹⁴. ODHS reported serving 8,794 families in state fiscal year 2024 ⁠².

Employment Payments pay $225 over three months: $100, then $75, then $50. They go to a JOBS participant whose TANF, Pre-TANF or SFPSS closed because job earnings went over the limit, or who chose to close TANF to save time-limit months. The parent must have reported the job on time and have income at or below 350% of the federal poverty level ⁠¹¹.

Applying through ONE, step by step

1. Gather proof

   Have identity and Social Security numbers, pay stubs, child support records, bank balances and vehicle information ready for everyone in the household. Resources must be $10,000 or less ⁠².

2. File in ONE

   Apply online through a ONE Online account, by phone, or at a local ODHS office. The same application can cover SNAP and Oregon Health Plan ⁠¹. Pre-TANF runs for up to 30 days from your filing date ⁠⁸.

3. Complete the interview

   ODHS contacts you to schedule an interview, in person or by phone ⁠¹.

4. Finish Pre-TANF screening

   Do the employability screening and the JOBS overview, and work out a case plan with your coach ⁠⁸.

5. Watch for the decision

   ODHS must send a decision notice within 30 days of your filing date. It can extend that to 45 days if information outside your control is late ⁠¹⁴. If you are approved, benefits go onto an Oregon Trail Card (EBT) ⁠¹.

6. Renew on time

   ODHS sends a renewal packet or notice 45 days before your renewal is due ⁠¹.

7. Appeal if you disagree

   ODHS must receive your hearing request within 45 days of the decision notice. If the cut comes from a JOBS disqualification, the deadline is 90 days after the reduction takes effect. A postmark date does not count, so send your request early ⁠¹⁵.

Child support pass-through with the Oregon Child Support Program

TANF families can sign up with the Oregon Child Support Program, which is run by the Oregon Department of Justice. The program can find the other parent, establish paternity, get or change an order, figure past-due support and process payments ⁠¹. While you receive TANF, Oregon passes through current child support of up to $50 per child, with a limit of $200 per family each month, before the state keeps the rest. That pass-through is also disregarded when ODHS counts your income ⁠¹³. Before you apply, you can get free advice on public charge and benefits from Oregon Legal Aid’s Public Benefits Hotline at 800-520-5292 ⁠¹.

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