You must be a US citizen or a qualifying non-citizen to get General Assistance (GA)

A qualifying non-citizen is any of the following:

• US Veteran honorably discharged or service member on active duty;
• Spouse or unmarried dependent of a U.S. Veteran or active duty service member;
• Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR) who came to the US before August 22, 1996;
• LPR who entered after August 22, 1996 and has been here for 5 years;
• Refugee, asylee, parolee, conditional entrant or a person whose deportation is being withheld;
• Member of certain Indian tribes;
• American Indian born in Canada;
• Amerasian and close family members admitted to the U.S. beginning March 20, 1988;
• Cuban or Haitian national admitted before April 21, 1980; and
• Hmong or Highland Laotian tribe member legally residing in the U.S. who helped U.S. personnel during the Vietnam era.
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The following non-citizens also qualify for GA under the General Assistance Handbook:

• Abused spouses, widows or children of a U.S. citizen or LPR who no longer live with the abuser or plan to live apart within one month after getting assistance. The need for assistance must be at least partly due to the abuse. The application must have a petition pending under 204(a)(1)(A) or (B) or 244(a)(3) of the INA.
• Victims of human trafficking.