Immigrants who meet the eligibility thresholds of age for the entitlement programs or poverty for the means-tested welfare programs generally have lower use rates and consume a lower dollar value relative to native-born Americans

See Immigration and the Welfare State: Immigrant and Native Use Rates and Benefit Levels for Means-Tested Welfare and Entitlement Programs by Alex Nowrasteh and Robert Orr of Cato. Excerpt:

"Figures 1 and 2 display the average welfare costs per person per program by nativity. We calculated these figures by multiplying the immigrant and native use rates by the value of benefits they consumed. Figure 1 compares all immigrants with all natives. The average value of welfare benefits per immigrant was about $3,718 in 2016, about 39 percent less than the $6,081 average value of welfare benefits per native. The average immigrant consumed $6 more in cash assistance, $7 more in SNAP benefits, and $98 more in Medicaid than the average native did. However, the average immigrant consumed $56 less in SSI, $610 less in Medicare, and $1,808 less in Social Security retirement benefits than the average native in 2016—more than compensating for their overconsumption of cash assistance, SNAP, and Medicaid.

Figure 1

Average per capita welfare cost by program and nativity, 2016

Source: Authors’ analysis of the 2017 Annual Social and Economic Supplement to the Current Population Survey and the 2015 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data.

Figure 2

Average per capita welfare cost by program and nativity for age- and income-eligible recipients, 2016

Source: Authors’ analysis of the 2017 Annual Social and Economic Supplement to the Current Population Survey and the 2015 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data.

Figure 2 shows the average welfare cost of natives and immigrants who meet the income or age requirements for these programs: recipients must have an income that is at least 200 percent of the poverty line or below for means-tested welfare benefits or age 65 years or older for the Social Security and Medicare entitlement programs. The poverty line threshold differs by state, but it is a general nationwide metric that approximates an apples-to-apples comparison of people who are the intended beneficiaries of means-tested welfare programs. On average, each immigrant who is broadly eligible for the welfare or entitlement programs costs $16,088 in 2016, about 27 percent less than the average native who costs $21,926. The average poor or elderly immigrant costs less than the average poor or elderly native for every means-tested and entitlement program.

Welfare Use Rates

Table 1 presents a more detailed breakdown of welfare use rates for natives, immigrants, naturalized citizens, and noncitizens for adults age 19 and older.¹⁵ Table 2 presents welfare use rates for children divided into five groups: (a) natives, (b) immigrants, (c) citizen children of citizen parents, (d) citizen children of noncitizen parents, and (e) noncitizen children.

Table 1

Welfare use rates by nativity and immigration status for adults age 19 and older at all poverty levels, 2016

Source: Authors’ analysis of the 2017 Annual Social and Economic Supplement to the Current Population Survey and the 2015 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data.

Table 2

Welfare use rates by nativity and immigration status for children age 18 and younger at all poverty levels, 2016

Source: Authors’ analysis of the 2017 Annual Social and Economic Supplement to the Current Population Survey and the 2015 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data.

Adult immigrant use rates are below those of native adults for SSI, Medicare, and Social Security (Table 1). However, immigrant adults are more likely to use SNAP and Medicaid than native-born adults and equally as likely to use cash assistance. Naturalized immigrants are more than three times more likely than noncitizen immigrants to use Medicare and Social Security but less likely to use cash assistance, SNAP, and Medicaid. Naturalized immigrants are more likely to use entitlements than noncitizens. Relative to natives, naturalized immigrants are less likely to consume Social Security and slightly more likely to consume Medicare.

Child immigrants have lower use rates than native-born children for cash assistance, SNAP, SSI, and Medicaid (Table 2). Citizen children of noncitizen parents have the highest use rates for cash assistance, SNAP, and Medicaid. The Social Security and Medicare entitlement programs are not included in Table 2 because children are not eligible for those programs.

Tables 3 and 4 show welfare use rates for recipients who are at or below 200 percent of the poverty line for means-tested welfare programs and those who are age 65 and older for the Social Security and Medicare entitlement programs. Poor immigrants are less likely than natives to use every welfare program with the exception of Medicaid, where they are 0.4 percent more likely to use it (Table 3). Naturalized immigrants use less welfare than natives for every program except SSI and Medicaid. Noncitizens use every welfare program less than natives do, often by wide margins.

Table 3

Welfare use rates by nativity and immigration status for adults age 19 and older, poverty and age adjusted, 2016

Source: Authors’ analysis of the 2017 Annual Social and Economic Supplement to the Current Population Survey and the 2015 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data.

Note: Recipients are at 200% of poverty line and below for means-tested welfare programs and age 65 and older for entitlement programs.

Immigrant children are also less likely to use all means­tested welfare programs than native-born children (Table 4). Noncitizen children are the least likely to use Medicaid even though the 2009 Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act gave states the power to extend Medicaid and CHIP coverage to all noncitizen children and pregnant women regardless of immigration status.¹⁶ As of 2014, 29 states expanded CHIP to some lawfully present immigrants who have been here for fewer than five years.¹⁷

Table 4

Welfare use rates by nativity and immigration status for children age 18 and younger, poverty adjusted, 2016

Source: Authors’ analysis of the 2017 Annual Social and Economic Supplement to the Current Population Survey and the 2015 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data.

Note: Recipients are at 200% of poverty line and below for means-tested welfare programs and age 65 and above for entitlement programs."