North Carolina benefits for college students
What North Carolina students can get beyond financial aid: Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) food assistance, NC Medicaid health coverage, child care help, phone and internet discounts and tax credits, with each program's own rules and application. Each section links to the full rules.
Checked against official sources October 11, 2026
Food assistance: Food and Nutrition Services (FNS)
North Carolina's name for SNAP, run by North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS), through county Departments of Social Services. If you are enrolled at least half-time, you need a student exemption to qualify, such as working 20 hours a week, work-study or caring for a young child. If you are enrolled less than half-time, the student rule does not apply and only the regular SNAP rules do. See every exemption →
NCDHHS says college students are not eligible unless they meet certain work requirements or exceptions. Its FNS policy manual (section 235, Student of Higher Education, Change #6-2021) follows the federal exemptions and adds North Carolina program names: Work First Family Assistance recipients are exempt, and students placed in college through WIOA, the FNS Employment and Training Program, Work First Employment Services, or Trade Act programs count as exempt.
Apply for Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) · North Carolina's page for students
Health coverage: NC Medicaid
North Carolina has expanded Medicaid, so adults with low incomes, students included, can qualify based on income. All your health coverage options →
Child care help: Subsidized Child Care Assistance (SCCA) Program
Going to college or training can count, with limits. Being in school or a job training program is an approved reason for care. For college, care is authorized only for a parent working toward an associate degree, or toward a bachelor's degree if they already hold an associate degree. Graduate study is not covered, and nobody who already holds a bachelor's degree can get care for another degree. Post-secondary care is limited to 20 months of enrollment (the clock can be paused for reported breaks). High school, GED/adult basic education and skills training also count.
Apply for Subsidized Child Care Assistance (SCCA) Program · Help on campus (CCAMPIS) →
Phone and internet: Lifeline
We found no extra state Lifeline discount on North Carolina's official pages, so the federal discount applies. Who qualifies →
Taxes
North Carolina has no state Earned Income Tax Credit. NCDOR does not offer filing directly on its website, but its NC Free File page lists free e-file products for the state return: Free File Alliance partners (1040.com, FreeTaxUSA, OLT, TaxSlayer, each with income or age limits) plus no-cost options such as 1040NOW, Cash App Taxes and GetYourRefund.
Free state filing · Federal education tax credits → · Free federal filing →
Keep looking
We explain programs; North Carolina's agencies decide who gets them. Spot something wrong? Tell us.