School Meal Eligibility

Eligibility Resources

All public and non-profit private schools (regardless of tuition) and all Residential Child Care Institutions (RCCIs) can participate in the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs. School boards must apply to their state child nutrition agency in order to institute a program. All students in these schools may participate in the programs. However, household income determines whether they receive free meals, reduced price meals (the maximum price to the student’s family is 30 cents for breakfast and 40 cents for lunch), or “paid” meals, for which students pay most of the cost (the federal government pays a modest amount for administrative costs).

Direct Certification

All school districts nationwide are required to directly certify children living in households that receive SNAP/Food Stamp benefits for free school meals. In some communities the State Department of Education or School Food Authority also works with the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) office to directly certify children for free meals. Only children living in households receiving SNAP/Food Stamp, FDPIR or TANF benefits may be directly certified.

Categorical Eligibility

When a child’s household is receiving Food Stamp, FDPIR and/or TANF benefits, the child is categorically eligible for free school meals. “Categorical eligibility” means that all children who fall in that category may receive free school meals.

In the absence of direct certification, the household must submit a School Meals application, but the household need only complete a small portion the following parts of the application:

  • the child’s name,
  • a Food Stamp, FDPIR and/or TANF case number for the child,
  • the signature of an adult household member - the adult’s Social Security number is NOT required.

Requests on the application for ANY other information are strictly optional.

Families receiving Food Stamps, FDPIR or TANF benefits also may obtain free school meals without filling out a school meals application if the household receives a letter from the Food Stamps, FDPIR or TANF agency, which includes the following information:

  • the child’s name,
  • a statement certifying that the child is a member of household currently certified to receive Food Stamps, FDPIR or TANF,
  • information sufficient to match the child with the name of the child certified as a member of that household the signature (or copy of the signature) of the agency employee authorized to certify this information the date

Homeless, runaway and migrant children are also automatically eligible for free school meals.

Income-Based Eligibility

When a child’s family is not receiving Food Stamp, TANF, or FDPIR benefits, the child may still qualify for free or reduced price meals based on the household income. These households must fill out more spaces on the school meals form:

  • the names of all household members
  • the amount of income each member received in the previous month and its source
  • the signature of an adult household member
  • the social security number of the adult household member who signs the application, OR, if that adult does not have a social security number, s/he must write “NONE” in that space, orif a “I do not have a social security number” box is provided, that must be checked. It cannot be left blank.

Requests on the application for ANY other information are strictly optional.

The child’s school then compares the household size and total income to the Federal Income Eligibility Guidelines, which determine who is eligible for free and reduced price school meals. Children from families with incomes at or below 130 percent of the poverty level are eligible for free meals. Those with incomes between 130 percent and 185 percent of the poverty level are eligible for reduced-price meals.