Senior Health Insurance Program (SHIP)
Free, unbiased Medicare counseling in Illinois. Trained counselors go through your costs and choices with you, and they don't sell plans.
Food
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for seniors in Illinois
Illinois SNAP, formerly food stamps, puts money for groceries on the Illinois Link card each month.
If someone in your home is 60 or older or disabled and your gross income is at or under 200% of the poverty level, there is no savings limit. In Cook and Franklin counties, older adults on SNAP may also use it to buy meals at approved restaurants.
How to apply in Illinois
- By phone
- 1-800-843-6154
- In person
- Apply at the IDHS Family Community Resource Center for your county.
- By mail
- Print the paper application (form IL444-2378 B), sign it, and carry, mail or fax it to your local Family Community Resource Center.
- Who runs it
- Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS)
Applying is free. Nobody should charge you to apply.
Apply on the official siteWho may qualify in Illinois
| Savings limit, household with someone 60+ or disabled, gross income at or under 200% of poverty | No limit |
|---|---|
| Savings limit if gross income is over 200% of poverty (Oct. 2026 to Sept. 2027) | $4,750 |
| Gross income limit for the no-savings-test rule (broad-based categorical eligibility) | 200% of the poverty level for households with someone 60+ or disabled; 165% for others |
How Illinois is different
Where Illinois's rules differ from the federal rules for SNAP for seniors.
- No savings test for households with someone 60 or older or disabled and gross income up to 200% of poverty, higher than the 165% line for other households
- Restaurant Meals Program in Cook and Franklin counties: if everyone in your SNAP household is 60 or older, disabled or homeless (or the spouse of someone who is), you may use SNAP at approved restaurants
- As of October 2024, USDA listed Illinois as running an Elderly Simplified Application Project for older adults with no earned income
Sources: Illinois General Assembly (source 8), USDA Food and Nutrition Administration (source 3)
Good to know
- Adults 18 through 64 with no children 13 or younger at home must work, volunteer or join a work program 80 hours a month to keep SNAP, unless they qualify for an exemption.
- Under the 2025 federal law (H.R. 1), many lawfully present immigrants, including refugees and asylees, lose SNAP at their first renewal on or after April 1, 2026. Green card holders who have had that status for 5 years or more can still qualify.
Free help
Free help with this in Illinois
Illinois Department on Aging
Your local Area Agency on Aging can help with meals, rides, help at home, caregiver support and applying for benefits.
More help in Illinois
SNAP food benefits in another state
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
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- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
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- Nevada
- New Hampshire
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- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Sources
- USDA Food and Nutrition Administration, SNAP Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Information: FY 2027 standards (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- USDA Food and Nutrition Administration, SNAP State Options Report, 17th Edition (data as of October 2024) (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- USDA Food and Nutrition Administration, Restaurant Meals Program (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- Illinois Department of Human Services, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program - SNAP (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- Illinois Department of Human Services, Cash, SNAP & Medical Assistance: Apply for Benefits (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- Illinois Department of Human Services, SNAP Work Requirements & Exemptions (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- Illinois Department of Human Services, Noncitizen Eligibility Changes (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- Illinois General Assembly, 305 ILCS 5/12-4.13a, Gross income eligibility standard; SNAP (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
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