Farm and Food Workers Relief Program

About

Beginning March 1, 2023, frontline farm workers and meatpacking workers who incurred expenses preparing for, preventing exposure to, and responding to the COVID-19 pandemic can apply for a one-time $600 relief payment through this website, which is administered by Pasa Sustainable Agriculture.

Pasa Sustainable Agriculture is one of 14 organizations and one tribal entity working with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to distribute one-time $600 relief payments through the Farm and Food Workers Relief Program.

Eligible frontline farm workers and meatpacking workers from the following 14 states can apply for a relief payment through this website: Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and West Virginia.

Applicants outside of these states will be eligible to apply for relief payments through other organizations. Click here to find organizations selected to distribute FFWR relief payments in your region.

Additional information:

• Relief payments will remain available until funds are exhausted.
• There is no cost to apply.
• Relief payments are not a loan and payment recipients will not be taxed.
• Immigration status is not one of the eligibility criteria.
• Applicant information is confidential. It will not be shared with the USDA nor any other state or federal agency.
• Only one relief payment can be issued to an eligible beneficiary. Applying for a relief payment through more than one location or organization will result in significant payment delays.

Eligibility requirements

Applicant must live or work in the following states:

• Connecticut
• Delaware
• District of Columbia (Washington, D.C.)
• Maine
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New York
• Ohio
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• Vermont
• West Virginia

Applicants outside of these states will be eligible to apply for relief payments through other organizations. Visit ams.usda.gov/services/grants/ffwr to see the list of organizations selected to distribute FFWR relief payments in your region.

DOCUMENTATION

Applicant must provide acceptable (1) photo identification and (2) proof of employment as a farm worker or meatpacking worker within the U.S. and its territories during the period between January 27, 2020 and May 11, 2023. 

Youth (under the age of 18) are eligible for a relief payment. Youth must provide the same documentation as described below.

Acceptable photo identification includes:

• State-issued driver’s license or identification
• Consular- or government-issued identification (foreign or domestic)
• H2A Visa or H2B Visa
• Employer-issued identification

Acceptable proof of employment includes:

• W-2 tax form from 2020, 2021, or 2022
• Pay stub that pre-dates May 11, 2023
• Employment contract
• Letter from an employer, including employee name, occupation, work performed, time period employed, and employer signature
• H2A Visa or H2B Visa

ELIGIBLE WORK TYPES

Applicants must have been employed as a frontline field worker, livestock worker, or meatpacker worker.

Hired workers are defined as anyone, other than an agricultural service worker, who was paid for at least one hour of agricultural work on a farm or ranch, or in a meat processing facility. Worker type is determined by what the employee was primarily hired to do, not necessarily what work was done during the pandemic. 

The relief payment is not intended for farm or meatpacking managers, however an applicant can meet eligibility criteria with sufficient proof as a frontline worker in eligible activities as described.

Eligible frontline workers include those who performed any of the following jobs at some point between January 27, 2020 and May 11, 2023.

Please review the descriptions of eligible frontline work activities and note the corresponding Standard Occupation Classification (SOC) codes. SOC codes are used by the Federal government to classify occupations. You will need to select one of these codes when you apply. Again, eligible applicants across these worker types should be frontline workers, and not those working in management positions.

Field Workers, including

Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products (Field Workers – 45-2041)

• Working directly with produce (sorting, washing, merchandising, etc.) at a farmstand or farmers market

Agricultural Equipment Operators (Field Workers – 45-2091)

• Operating agricultural equipment to prepare soil, water, or spray plants and produce
• Operating equipment to move produce and goods for storage and/or shipping on a farm or within a warehouse

Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery and Greenhouse (Field Workers – 45-2092)

• Planting, tending, and harvesting crops
• Working in a greenhouse to prepare plants for orders and/or shipping
• Harvesting christmas trees, balsam/fir branches for wreaths
• Growing sod or peat moss

Agricultural Workers, All Other  (Field Workers – 45-2099)

• Preparing or loading mushroom compost/substrate into mushroom boxes or houses

Packers and Packagers, Hand (Field Workers – 53-7064)

• Working in a warehouse to wash, pack, process, or prepare produce for shipping
• Processing fresh produce into value-added goods (washing, chopping, mixing, etc.)
• Making, packaging, or inspecting value-added agricultural products (packed produce, mixed salads, wreaths, etc.)

A list of qualifying crops for field activities can be found here.

Please note, most landscaping work is not eligible. Some applicants may be approved if they also grow plants and are consistently returning to tend to the same plants.

Livestock workers, including

Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products (Livestock Workers – 45-2041)

• Processing or washing eggs

Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals (Livestock Workers – 45-2093)

• Raising fish, working in aquaculture, or catching fish/seafood (must not be owner or contractor)
• Tending livestock, including milking/caring for cows, and caring for poultry
• Performing livestock insemination (must not be owner or contractor)

Agricultural Workers, All Other (Livestock Workers – 45-2099)

• Loading or unloading livestock from trucks
• Cleaning or maintaining livestock barns/facilities
• Processing or producing dairy products at dairy farms

Packers and Packagers, Hand (Livestock Workers – 53-7064)

• Processing or producing dairy products at dairy farms

Meatpacking workers, including

Slaughterers and Meat Packers (Meatpacking Workers – 51-3023)

• Slaughtering, butchering, processing, packing, or inspecting meat, fish, or poultry (including cooked meat products such as chicken nuggets and hot dogs)

Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers (Meatpacking Workers – 51-3022)

• Slaughtering, butchering, processing, packing, or inspecting meat, fish, or poultry (including cooked meat products such as chicken nuggets and hot dogs)

Food Processing Workers, All Other (Meatpacking Workers – 51-3099)

• Operating a forklift to transport meat in meat packing facilities
• Cleaning or maintaining meatpacking facilities

Relief payments are not available to farm owners or farm operators through the FFWR Program, except for those with proof of employment as frontline farm workers or meatpacking workers on farms they do not also own or operate. Farm owners and operators have been eligible for COVID-19 relief through other USDA programs.

Beware of fraud

To protect yourself from scams and fraud, please review the following information.

• You do not have to go to a notary to apply for the USDA Farm and Food Workers Relief (FFWR) program. Only organizations designated by the USDA may process your application. Click here to see the list of organization selected to distribute FFWR relief payments in your region.

Note: Application periods may begin at different times depending on which organization you are applying through. Relief payments may not be made available at the same time throughout the country.

• There is no cost to apply. It’s free to apply to the FFWR program. Application assistance is also free.

• Never provide personal information to organizations that have not been approved by the USDA to distribute FFWR relief funds. This includes personal documents or any other form of identification. Click here to see the list of organization selected to distribute FFWR relief payments in your region.

Application Status

Click here to check the status of your FFWR application.

You will need to enter your date of birth in MM/DD/YYYY format and your application ID.

Apply

Apply for a one-time $600 payment through the Farm and Food Workers Relief (FFWR) Program.

Please be sure to review the (1) eligibility requirements, (2) fraud information, and (3) frequently asked questions in the menu on the left before applying.

As noted in the eligibility requirements, you’ll need to submit acceptable proof of identification and proof of employment to complete your application. Please have these documents and information ready before starting your application.

If you choose to receive your payment through a direct deposit to your bank, you’ll also need to have your account and routing numbers available.

Click here to begin your application.