conversation: User (dumbmoneyidiotface): "Hello everyone! I'm very sorry if this isn't the right subreddit for these kinds of questions. I found it by  googling similar topics. \n\n\nSome background information: My girlfriend [19F] and I [also 19F] are currently trying to start our first semester of college in the spring, we didn't get approved for financial aid in time to start in the fall (lots of dependency override documents.) We were renting a house from her parents for a good long while but recently moved in with them after a situation out of our control made it so we could no longer rent that property from them. We are only allowed here for a finite amount of time. We have absolutely no money saved, I am working on getting a job, and she only recently got a new job. Her last full time work situation was unsafe because of personal transgressions with her fellow employees, so we were very desperate for this income. Our living situation is very much so not ideal and we need to move out by January. Between our living expenses and bills (can provide more info if needed), we're living paycheck to paycheck and need to make changes to start saving up for that. \n\n\nShe got the job through a friend and we did not know it was under the table until she already accepted it. I won't go into too much detail but it is a very small family business that doesn't tax their 4 or so employees. Being kind of inexperienced in anything related to this (I have been homeless working self employed until moving in with her) and she also having no experience or family guidance about anything financial - we really don't know what this means or how to document it while filling for any government programs or taxes.\n\n\nWe're looking into getting on food stamps and Medicaid, both to help save money to move out as soon as possible. She has a health condition and is getting to the end of her medication, so getting covered with insurance is dire already. Her parents will absolutely not give her coverage on their plan, and we don't know if they say she is a dependent on their taxes until tax season comes around and they gauge their own financial situation. They have done this randomly twice before, regardless of where we have live, so from what I understand we have to be ready to file taxes on her income. \n\n\nDoes anyone have any experience with filing for Medicaid or SNAP benefits when you work under the table? They base your eligiblity entirely off of what you make, so I'm very confused on how to fill out any form that asks if it's not documented. \n\n\nI'm also just looking for advice on how to exist with undocumented income, such as taxes and any other documentation. She makes minimum wage, so under 10k a year for sure. I know it's not that uncommon but like I said, I'm very inexperienced with this. We've both grown up without a lot of resources or information sources to help us understand this kind of stuff! I'm really sorry for sounding like a complete blubbering idiot who doesn't know how to use Google or something, and I'm very thankful for any helpful words or advice I can get. Thank you so much for reading! \n\n"
  Self: "This is why you don't want to be paid that way. I don't really have advice on how to change that other than for her to find a different job. "
  User (dumbmoneyidiotface): "Yeah, to be honest if we weren't so desperate for any income I would of immediately told her not to work there since this just seemed like trouble immediately. :( Thank you so much! "
  