Pennsylvania grants
& benefits: rent rebates, PACE and COMPASS.

The Property Tax/Rent Rebate Program refunds part of the property tax or rent you paid the year before. It covers Pennsylvanians age 65 and older, widows and widowers age 50 and older, and people with disabilities age 18 and older.

For rent or tax paid in 2025, household income had to be $48,110 or less. The expansion lifted the top standard rebate from $650 to $1,000 and tied the income limits to cost-of-living adjustments. The $48,110 cap is more than $1,500 above the year before.

Filing on myPATH is free, needs no account, and works in English and Spanish. Claims for 2025 are due December 31, 2026. First-time filers who mail a paper claim must include proof of age or permanent disability.

• Income $0 to $8,550: up to $1,000
• Income $8,551 to $16,040: up to $770
• Income $16,041 to $19,240: up to $460
• Income $19,241 to $48,110: up to $380

PACE and PACENET are Department of Aging programs that lower prescription costs for qualified residents age 65 and up. Both are funded by the Pennsylvania Lottery.

Younger adults have a fallback. Anyone 18 or older who cannot get PACE or PACENET can try the PACE Clearinghouse, which helps with prescription costs and links people to food, housing and job help.

Created in the 2025-26 state budget, the Working Pennsylvanians Tax Credit equals 10 percent of the federal Earned Income Tax Credit. Revenue lists $805 as the largest credit, and an online calculator estimates yours.

Workers claimed it for the first time on their 2025 tax returns. Revenue expected about $193 million in relief for roughly 940,000 people in that first season.

Families who pay for child care have a second state credit to check. The Child and Dependent Care Enhancement Tax Credit now matches 100 percent of the federal credit.

Expansion coverage reached Pennsylvania on January 1, 2015, a year after Ohio and Illinois. Once approved, members pick a HealthChoices managed care organization, the name for the state's Medicaid managed care plans.

Children up to age 18 with disabilities can get full, free Medical Assistance through PH95 even when their parents earn too much for regular Medicaid.

Turned down, or lost coverage? Pennie, Pennsylvania's official health and dental insurance marketplace, may offer a low-cost or no-cost plan.

DHS runs LIHEAP through county assistance offices, and the 2026-2027 season is scheduled to open November 2, 2026.

Income limits, crisis rules and shutoff protections are in our Pennsylvania LIHEAP and utility shutoff guide.

DHS also runs SNAP, and you can apply on COMPASS, the same site used for Medical Assistance.

Income limits, ACCESS card dates and county office numbers are in our Pennsylvania SNAP guide.