If you get Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits, the Department of Human Services (DHS) may tell you that you have been paid too much.

The overpayment can be for one month, many months or many years. For example, you can be overpaid a few dollars each month. Or, maybe one month you got SNAP benefits (formerly food stamps) that you were not supposed to receive.

How will I know if I have an overpayment?

You should get a notice from DHS which says:

• How much you were overpaid
• When you were overpaid
• Why you were overpaid. For example "client failed to report income."

SNAP overpayments

Does it matter what reason is given for the SNAP overpayment?

When a SNAP overpayment is discovered, DHS decides who is at fault for the overpayment. They might decide that it was their fault or your fault. For TANF overpayments, DHS does not have to decide who was at fault. But no matter who caused the overpayment, you have to pay it back.

SNAP agency error

If someone at DHS made a mistake that caused the SNAP overpayment, the overpayment is called an "agency error." An example of an agency error is when you did report your income, but DHS did not add this income to your budget.

Inadvertent SNAP client error

If DHS decides that you were at fault, then the overpayment will be called an "inadvertent client error." An example of a client error is when someone moves out of your household or has gotten a job, and you forgot to tell DHS. The reason for the overpayment can matter if you are charged with an inadvertent client error overpayment.

SNAP intentional program violation

DHS also decides whether the SNAP error was on purpose or just a mistake. If they decide that it was on purpose, it is called an "intentional program violation." DHS may call the overpayment inadvertent household error at first. But, after investigation they may change it to a suspected intentional program violation. 

Covid-19 and SNAP overpayments

If you received a SNAP overpayment during the COVID pandemic, DHS may cancel your overpayment claim. DHS will terminate or write off overpayment claims from March 2020 through March 31, 2023, if the overpayment:

• began after March 2020, and
• was because of agency error or inadvertent client error.

If the overpayment started before March 2020, then DHS will continue to collect the overpayment even if some of the overpayment months are after March 2020. 

Is there a [no-lexicon]statute[/no-lexicon] of limitations that keeps DHS from collecting old overpayments?

For SNAP overpayments, DHS cannot establish overpayments from more than 6 years before the date the overpayment was discovered.   

Once an overpayment is established and you are sent notice, there is no statute of limitations for collecting SNAP or TANF overpayments through Illinois state or federal payments, such as income tax refunds. However, if DHS sued you in court, you may be able to raise a statute of limitations argument.

Starting January 1, 2024, DHS must send written notice of an overpayment and a demand for payment within 5 years of when DHS's right to collect first starts. If the Attorney General brings a case to recover an overpayment, the case must start within 10 years of when the notice was sent.  

SNAP and TANF overpayments

What should I do if I have been charged with a SNAP or TANF overpayment?

First, you should carefully read the notice. Look at the dates on the notice and ask yourself if someone in your household was working, but not reporting their income during the date(s) DHS put on the notice. Or, did you forget to tell DHS that a person who was counted as a household member has moved out?

If you still have questions after reading the notice, you should file an appeal right away. For example, you might have some questions about:

• The period of the overpayment,
• The amount of the overpayment,
• How the overpayment was calculated. or
• The reason that DHS gave for the overpayment.

There is no cost to file an appeal, and it is the best way to get DHS to give you a better explanation for why the overpayment occurred. Filing an appeal is the only way to get DHS to change their decision.

How much time do I have to appeal the overpayment?

For TANF and other cash benefits, you must appeal within 60 days from the date of the notice. For SNAP, you have 90 days to appeal from the date on your notification letter.

If the notice says that you were overpaid in both SNAP and cash assistance, you only have 60 days to appeal the overpayment decision for your cash assistance. You should file an appeal:

• through the ABE Appeals Portal,
• in writing at your local DHS office, or
• by phone to the Bureau of Assistance Hearings at (800) 435-­0774.

How do I pay DHS back for the overpayment?

There are 2 ways DHS can collect a SNAP or TANF overpayment from you: repayment and recoupment.

If you are still getting SNAP or TANF benefits:

When you are charged with an overpayment, a letter asking for payment will be sent to you. This is repayment. The letter gives you the option of paying the entire claim (which is often not an option because of the size of the overpayment) or trying to set up a payment plan.

Another way to pay is by recoupment. Recoupment means that DHS will keep part of your current benefits each month until the overpayment is paid off. This is most commonly used in cases that are currently receiving SNAP or TANF benefits. The amount taken from your monthly benefit amount depends on the reason for the overpayment.

• If your overpayment was determined to be a client error that was a mistake (not an intentional program violation) or an agency error, the monthly recoupment amount is the greater of $10 or 10% of your current monthly benefit. For example, if your household currently receives $200 per month in SNAP, DHS would keep $20 per month until the overpayment amount is paid back. This would leave you with $180 in food stamps each month.

• If your overpayment was an "intentional program violation" the monthly recoupment amount is the greater of $20 or 20% of your current monthly benefit. For example, if your household currently gets $200 per month in SNAP, DHS would take out $40 each month until the overpayment amount is paid back. This would leave you with $160 in food stamps each month.

• DHS only recoups SNAP overpayments from SNAP benefits and TANF overpayments from TANF benefits.

If you are no longer getting SNAP or TANF benefits:

When you are charged with an overpayment and you are no longer receiving SNAP or TANF, a letter asking for repayment will be sent to you. When you get the letter, you should work out a payment plan with DHS. You can pay the whole amount of the overpayment or make a payment plan to pay it back over time.

If you don't make payments according to your payment plan for 90 days, your overpayment account will become "delinquent." When this happens, your case can be referred to:

• A collection agency,
• The State Comptroller Offset System, which can take your state tax refund, lottery winnings or a state payroll check,
• The Treasury Offset Program, which can take your federal tax refund, social security benefits, and/or other federal checks,
• The Attorney General for civil prosecution,
• Your employer to garnish your wages, or
• Garnish your unemployment benefits.

If you file bankruptcy while you are in the process of repaying an overpayment, no one can try to collect from you after they are notified of the bankruptcy filing until a decision is made by the bankruptcy court. But you must list DHS and the overpayment on your schedule.