1/21/22 NEWS RELEASE FROM FEMA: Citizenship and FEMA Eligibility

FEMA is committed to helping all eligible disaster survivors recover from flooding and mudslides in Washington Nov. 13-15, 2021, including U.S. citizens, non-citizen nationals and qualified aliens.

Disaster survivors in Clallam, Skagit and Whatcom counties, including residents of the Lummi Nation, Nooksack Indian Tribe, the Quileute Nation and other tribes in the three counties, may apply for assistance from FEMA’s Individuals and Households Program. You or a member of your household must be a U.S. citizen, non-citizen national or qualified alien. If you do not meet the status of either U.S. citizen, non-citizen national or qualified alien, your household may still apply for and be considered for IHP assistance if:

• Another adult member of your household meets the eligibility criteria and certifies their citizenship status during the registration process or signs the Declaration and Release form; or

• The parent or guardian of a minor child who is a U.S. citizen, non-citizen national, or a qualified alien applies for assistance on behalf of the child, as long as they live in the same household. The parent or legal guardian must register as the co-applicant and the minor child must be under age 18 at the time the disaster occurred.

  The deadline to apply for FEMA disaster assistance is March 7, 2022.

  Qualified aliens

  A qualified alien includes:

  •  A legal permanent resident (“green card” holder).

  • An asylee, refugee or an alien whose deportation is being withheld.

  • An alien paroled into the U.S. for at least one year.

  • An alien granted conditional entry (per law in effect prior to April 1, 1980).

  • A Cuban or Haitian entrant.

  • Certain aliens subjected to extreme cruelty or who have been a victim of a severe form of human trafficking, including persons with a “T” or “U” visa.

  • Aliens whose children have been abused and alien children whose parent has been abused who fit certain criteria.

FEMA Fact Sheet 003 DR-4635-WA

Non-Citizen Nationals

A non-citizen national is a person born in an outlying possession of the U.S. (e.g., American Samoa) on or after the date the U.S. acquired the possession, or a person whose parents are U.S. non-citizen nationals. All U.S. citizens are U.S. nationals; however, not every U.S. national is a U.S. citizen.

Qualified Minor Children

The parent or guardian of a minor child living in the same household may apply for assistance on behalf of the minor child who is a U.S. citizen, non-citizen national, or qualified alien. The minor child must be under age 18 as of the first day of the incident period or disaster declaration day, whichever comes first.

Resources

Catholic Immigration Legal Services in Seattle provides legal immigration assistance to low-income residents of Washington: 100 23rd Ave. S, Seattle, WA 98144-2302, phone 206-328-6314; DACA Hotline: 206-566-6664.

See Citizenship and Immigration Status Requirements for Federal Public Benefits for more information in multiple languages at fema.gov/assistance/individual/program/citizenship-immigration-status.

If you’re unsure of your immigration status, talk to an immigration expert to learn if your status falls within the immigration status requirements for FEMA disaster assistance.

Voluntary organizations often offer help regardless of citizenship status. To find voluntary organizations:

- Call 800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767) or go online to redcross.org/find-your-local-chapter.html.

- Visit nvoad.org/ to learn about other voluntary organizations. Apply for FEMA Disaster Assistance

Apply online at DisasterAssistance.gov, call 800-621-3362 or use the FEMA app for smartphones. If you use a relay service, such as video relay (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA the number for that service.

For more information about Washington flood recovery, visit fema.gov/disaster/4635. Follow the FEMA Region 10 Twitter account at twitter.com/femaregion10