7 min read · Last updated September 17, 2026

LIHEAP benefits are administered state by state under a fixed $36,300-to-$49,500 income range for a family of four, so a family that moves must reapply from zero under the new state’s own income limit and application form, even the same week a benefit was approved in the old one.

In this article

• Why the benefit cannot follow you
• Why the income cutoff itself can change when you move
• How to apply the moment you land in a new state
• What families get wrong, and what to do if you’re told the money ran out
• Frequently asked questions

Grace and her husband were approved for a $380 LIHEAP energy-assistance benefit in February, applied directly to their old apartment’s gas account in their home state, to help heat the home where their 7-year-old son does his homework at the kitchen table. In March, a new job moved the family two states away, and the approval, the paperwork, and the benefit itself stayed behind with the account it was paid to. The family had to start the entire application over in their new state, as if February had never happened, this time with a son in a new school and a gas company they had never dealt with before.

Why the benefit cannot follow you

The federal government funds the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) as a block grant, then hands the money to each state, territory, and tribe to run on its own terms. According to the Administration for Children and Families’ (ACF) own consumer FAQ on LIHEAP, “unlike other federal programs, each State has its own form and rules for applying for energy assistance,” and “we provide money to states, territories, and tribes and in turn those organizations set up their own rules and processes for getting LIHEAP.” There is no national LIHEAP account or case file that moves with a family. Each grantee also “sets its own income limits” and “each grantee’s payment levels are different,” so the same household can be approved in one place and turned away in another using the exact same income.

This is the mechanic that catches families off guard. A benefit is not portable because it was never a personal account to begin with. It is a payment the old state made to the old utility company for the old address, using that state’s own fiscal-year funding. A move breaks every link in that chain at once.

Why the income cutoff itself can change when you move

Federal law does not set one national income limit for LIHEAP. Instead, it tells every state that eligibility cannot fall below 110% of the federal poverty level, but allows each state to set its ceiling as high as 150% of the poverty level or 60% of that state’s own median income, whichever number is bigger, according to 42 U.S.C. § 8624(b)(2), the federal LIHEAP statute. A high-cost, higher-median-income state can end up with a much more generous ceiling than a state that uses the bare 150%-of-poverty option.

For a family of four, the 2026 federal poverty level, the income benchmark the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) publishes every year, is $33,000 a year. That puts the mandatory floor, 110% of poverty, at $36,300. A common ceiling many states use, 150% of poverty, comes out to $49,500. A family earning $40,000 clears the federal floor everywhere, but whether they actually qualify depends entirely on which of these two numbers, or something in between, their current state chose to use.

Household size	110% of poverty (federal floor, no state may go lower)	150% of poverty (a common state ceiling)
1	$17,556	$23,940
2	$23,804	$32,460
3	$30,052	$40,980
4	$36,300	$49,500
5	$42,548	$58,020

How to apply the moment you land in a new state

Do not wait for a bill to arrive before starting the new application. Contact the new state’s LIHEAP office directly, since there is no way to transfer a case file between states, and ask three things in the same call: what the current income ceiling is for your household size, whether the state’s funding for this program year is still open, and whether you need to reapply through a local community action agency or directly through a state office. Bring the same documents you used before: proof of income, proof of address at the new home, and a copy of the utility bill you need help with. None of your old state’s paperwork carries any weight in the new state’s process, so do not delay applying while you wait for old records to arrive.

What families get wrong, and what to do if you’re told the money ran out

The most common mistake is assuming a LIHEAP approval is like a mailing address, something that updates when you move. It does not update. It ends. The second mistake is applying only once and giving up after a denial. Nationally, only about 20% of income-eligible households actually receive a LIHEAP payment in a given year, according to the same ACF consumer FAQ, because states routinely exhaust their yearly funding before every eligible family applies. Being told the funds ran out is common and is not the same as being ineligible.

If your new state tells you funding has run out for the regular program, ask specifically about a separate energy-crisis or emergency component, which many states fund and reopen separately from the general assistance the family originally used to have, and ask your new state’s LIHEAP office to flag your household for the next funding cycle rather than closing your case entirely. If you believe the office made an eligibility mistake, every state, tribe, and territory has an appeals process, typically explained in the denial notice itself.

For families whose move is also a housing change, our guide to Housing Choice Voucher portability covers a similar “does this benefit follow me” question for rental assistance, and our general LIHEAP guide covers the standard application process if you have not applied before at all.

Frequently asked questions

If I already used my state’s one-time crisis benefit this year, can I use another state’s crisis benefit after I move? {#crisis-benefit-again} Generally yes, because each state’s crisis program is funded and tracked separately. Using a crisis benefit in your old state does not appear in your new state’s system, so you can apply for that state’s own crisis assistance if you meet its rules.

Does it matter what time of year I move? {#time-of-year} Yes. Most states run LIHEAP on a set program year with an application window, often opening in fall for heating season. Moving into a state after its window has closed for the year can mean waiting for the next opening, so ask the new state’s office for its specific dates right away.

Can my new utility company transfer the payment my old state already made? {#utility-transfer} No. The old payment went to your old utility account at your old address and stays there. Your new utility account starts fresh, and any assistance for it has to come from a new, separate approval in your new state.

Do I lose my place in line if I have to reapply? {#lose-place-in-line} There is no shared line between states, so there is nothing to lose. You are simply a new applicant in the new state’s own queue, subject to that state’s own funding availability and processing time.