Income: Anything received in cash or in kind that can be used to meet needs for food or shelter.

Two Types of Income: Earned Income and Unearned Income

Earned Income: Typically, gross wages—salaries, commissions, bonuses, severance pay and in-kind value of food or shelter; or net income from self-employment; sheltered workshop earnings; royalties from publications; and garnished funds.

Earned Income Exclusions: Some of the earned income exclusions are income tax refund payments, any portion of the $20 general exclusion not applied to unearned income, $65 per month and one-half of remaining earned income in a month.

Unearned Income: All income that is not earned income. Unearned income is counted when it is actually or constructively received.

Unearned Income Exclusions: Many items, like needs-based assistance wholly funded by state or city, disaster relief assistance, and interest on excluded burial resources, are excluded from unearned income. Also, the first $20 of unearned income is excluded as a general income exclusion.

Non-income Items: These are not considered income by the Social Security Administration. Some of these include medical care and services (includes VA payments for unusual medical expenses), clothing, income tax refunds, money borrowed and money received as repayment of a loan.

Special Income Exclusions: Some of these include payments to Japanese internees by the United States and Agent Orange settlement payments.

Prepared by Neighborhood Legal Services, Inc. - Updated January 2008
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