Moving states? Here's what happens to your benefits.
Medicaid, SNAP, WIC, unemployment, and TANF each follow different rules when you cross a state line. Build your exact checklist — verified against official agencies, updated 2026-08.
The five rules, in five lines
Medicaid
Close & reapply
Ends in your old state; apply fresh in the new one under its own limits.
All 51 jurisdictions →
SNAP
Close & reapply
Ends in your old state; apply fresh in the new one under its own limits.
All 51 jurisdictions →
WIC
Transfers via VOC card
Ask your clinic for a VOC card before moving — every state must accept it.
All 51 jurisdictions →
Unemployment
Claim keeps paying
The state where you earned wages keeps paying after you move. Never close it.
All 51 jurisdictions →
TANF
Close & reapply
Ends in your old state; apply fresh in the new one under its own limits.
All 51 jurisdictions →
Why moves go wrong
None of the big five benefits "follow" you automatically — but each fails differently. Medicaid and SNAP block your new application while the old case is open. TANF quietly burns your federal 60-month lifetime clock across every state. Unemployment gets cancelled by people who wrongly "transfer" it. WIC is the one program with a real transfer document, and most families never hear about it.
Every page on this site is generated from a per-state dataset we verify against the official agency — the page shows the verification date and cites the exact source. When an agency doesn't publish a number, we say so instead of guessing. Read how we work in our methodology.