Vermont Reach Up cash assistance for single parents and families (2026)

Why the Reach Up amount depends on your rent and county

DCF does not publish a flat grant table. Caseworkers build each family’s need from three pieces, then multiply the total by 0.496 ⁠¹⁠²:

• Basic needs standard. This depends on household size: $644 for one person, $942 for two, $1,236 for three, plus $236 for each person after eight ⁠¹.
• Housing allowance. This covers actual rent, mortgage, property taxes and similar costs, up to $400 a month outside Chittenden County or $450 in Chittenden County ⁠².
• Special housing needs allowance. This is the part of your housing cost above that cap, up to $90 more ⁠².

Cents are dropped from the result ⁠¹. The table shows what that formula produces. It is our calculation from DCF’s published standards, not a DCF chart.

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

A family whose housing costs are lower than the cap gets a smaller grant. If housing is provided free, no housing allowance is budgeted at all ⁠².

The 49.6% factor is written into Reach Up rule 2239 ⁠². DCF’s rules page listed no proposed or final proposed rule changes on Oct. 20, 2026. DCF did issue Reach Up procedure bulletins dated April 1 and Oct. 1, 2026, but Vermont’s document server would not let us open them. Ask your case manager whether either one changed the basic needs table ⁠¹⁵.

How earnings and child support shrink the check

Vermont counts income against the payment standard in the table above. If net income equals or exceeds the standard, the family is ineligible. If it is lower, the grant is the difference ⁠².

• Earned income. By statute, DCF disregards the first $350 a month of each member’s earnings plus 25% of the rest ⁠⁸⁠². Example: a parent with two children who rents outside Chittenden County for $490 or more and earns $1,000 a month has $487.50 of countable income. The grant becomes $856 minus $487.50, or $368. With earnings alone, that family stays eligible until gross pay reaches about $1,491 a month. These figures are our calculation using the rule.
• Child support. The first $100 of child support collected each month is paid to you as a “family bonus” and does not reduce the grant. Support above $100 is the “parent share”: it is subtracted from the Reach Up benefit two months later and paid to you on the regular schedule ⁠².
• Unearned income. Other unearned income, minus any court-ordered support you pay to someone else, counts dollar for dollar ⁠¹.

No asset test since July 1, 2026

Act 136 of 2026 (H.657) was signed on June 15, 2026. Section 1 added a sentence to 33 V.S.A. § 1103 barring DCF from imposing any asset limit on Reach Up applicants or participants. The change took effect July 1, 2026 ⁠⁶. Before that date, families could hold up to $9,000 in countable assets, with retirement and 529 accounts excluded ⁠⁸. Savings, vehicles and a home no longer affect eligibility. Lump-sum payments received while on Reach Up still count as income under rule 2248.1 ⁠².

Reach Up participation: goal plans instead of fixed hours

Vermont does not use a separate work program with its own name. The work component is Reach Up Services, which DCF’s case managers run under rule 2300. Since a 2021 law took effect on Jan. 1, 2024, state law has used a “universal engagement” model ⁠⁷. Each adult helps write a family development plan (FDP) with goals related to education, employment, finances, health, housing, safety, training and well-being ⁠⁴⁠³. You must take part in your FDP activities for the hours they are scheduled and available, unless you have good cause ⁠³. The rule ties your required hours to the activities in your own plan, not to one statewide number. A participant counts as able to work if nothing prevents them from 35 hours a week of countable activities ⁠³.

Participation is deferred for a parent caring for a baby under six weeks old (or for six weeks after an adoption), a caretaker age 60 or older, someone needed at home to care for a disabled or seriously ill family member, and people affected by domestic violence or medical issues ⁠³. If you stop engaging without good cause, DCF first offers conciliation. If that fails, the grant is cut by $75 per sanctioned adult for each of the first three months of sanction. From the fourth month, the cut is $150 ⁠³. For the first six months of a sanction, DCF can limit the cut so you can still pay housing costs up to the housing allowance. Twelve straight months of engagement clear past sanctions ⁠³. DCF also pays incentive payments for completing FDP tasks, and these do not reduce the grant ⁠³⁠⁸.

Vermont’s 60-month limit and the months that do not count

A household reaches the limit when a participant has received 60 countable months of Reach Up, or of TANF-funded cash in another state ⁠²⁠⁷. Vermont does not count a month toward the 60 when the participant is:

• unable to work;
• caring for a child under one year old;
• affected by domestic violence; or
• needed at home full time to care for an ill or disabled parent, spouse or child ⁠⁷.

The clock does not start until a parent turns 18 ⁠⁷. After 60 months, benefits continue if each adult fits one of those four situations or is engaged in a work activity listed in state law. A family that does not qualify can still keep benefits if the program director finds, month by month, that each adult is actively participating in Reach Up requirements ⁠²⁠⁷. The sanction process is not available after month 60. Non-engagement then closes the case instead of reducing the grant ⁠³.

Reach First has ended; what remains around Reach Up

Reach First, Vermont’s short-term diversion program, no longer operates. DCF says the Fiscal Year 2027 Appropriations Act eliminated it effective July 1, 2026 ⁠⁵. Vermont now has no one-time lump-sum payment in place of monthly Reach Up. Families in a short-term crisis apply for regular Reach Up.

DCF still runs three related programs:

• Reach Ahead is for families whose Reach Up or PSE case closed in the last six months, with an adult meeting the family’s federal work requirement through paid work. It pays $50 a month for 12 months, then $5 a month for 12 months. It also provides the maximum child care subsidy and help with costs such as car repairs and work clothes, for up to 24 months in a lifetime. DCF enrolls eligible families automatically ⁠⁹.
• Post-Secondary Education (PSE) supports parents with household income under 150% of the poverty level who are earning an undergraduate degree. It provides monthly cash if you are income-eligible, plus help with child care, transportation and supplies. You must be accepted to college, find your own tuition funding and work no more than 20 hours a week. Apply with Form 202 and Form 202PSE by mail to ADPC, Economic Services Division, 280 State Drive, Waterbury, VT 05671-1500, or at a district office ⁠¹⁰.
• Reach Up Child Only pays a caretaker benefit to a relative or family friend raising a child under 18 who is not on SSI or in foster care. Apply on Form 202CARE through DCF’s document uploader, or call 1-800-479-6151 for a paper copy ⁠¹³.

Applying through myBenefits, step by step

1. Open a myVermont account and apply

   Use DCF’s myBenefits portal and choose “Apply For Benefits.” If you already use the ESD Document Uploader, sign in with that account. You can also call 1-800-479-6151 for a paper application or apply at a district office ⁠¹¹⁠⁴.

2. Gather proof

   DCF verifies earnings from the last 30 days, and every household member must provide a Social Security number or apply for one ⁠². Bring rent or mortgage proof so your housing allowance is budgeted. DCF’s shelter expense form is 202H ⁠¹⁴.

3. Complete the interview

   The interview is by phone or in person. Your caseworker explains the program requirements and starts your initial family development plan ⁠⁴⁠².

4. Decide about child support

   If the other parent lives elsewhere, a child support case may be opened automatically. If pursuing support could endanger you or your children, ask for a waiver on Form 137W. DCF decides within 30 days and cannot delay or reduce your benefits while it decides ⁠⁴⁠².

5. Watch for the written decision

   DCF must decide and mail a notice no later than 30 days after your application date ⁠².

6. Appeal if you disagree

   Request a fair hearing before the Human Services Board within 90 days of the date the notice was mailed. If you ask before a cut or closure takes effect, your benefits stay the same until the hearing decision ⁠².

7. Plan the exit

   When the case closes because of work, DCF moves eligible families into Reach Ahead ⁠⁹⁠⁴.

Child support through Vermont’s Office of Child Support

The Office of Child Support (OCS) is part of DCF. Its services are free to any parent or guardian, whether or not they get Reach Up. OCS establishes legal parentage, sets, changes and enforces support orders, and locates a missing parent ⁠¹². Apply online through OCS’s application linked from its Child Support Services page, or ask for a paper application at 1-800-786-3214. If domestic violence is a concern, OCS can take extra steps to protect your address and information ⁠¹².

More Vermont help is listed at all Vermont assistance guides, and you can compare cash assistance across states.