So many people nowadays are finding that they can not afford even the most basic necessities of life. Buying health care or even buying food can be financially difficult for families living in poverty. Fortunately for these people, there are many government programs that help people in these types of situations.

One of these programs is the government phones for low income families program. This program allows families living in poverty that can not afford phones to be able to have cell phones for free. The purpose of the program is to let people have a way of contacting someone in case of emergencies. For example, if your car broke down on the road, you can call someone to tow you or give you a lift. Other times it could be a life or death situation where the cell phone could really come in handy.

If you want to get free government phone service, then you will need to meet the income qualifications. You can check with the cellular provider, Safelink, to figure out if you qualify. It would be safe to say that if you are already getting benefits from other programs, like public housing assistance and food stamps, that you should qualify for government phones for low income families too.

Even if you get a free government phone, there is a limit to how you can use the phone. The amount of minutes you get for free each month sums up to about one hour. That is not a lot of minutes so you have to really conserve your calls for real emergencies. The good thing though is that the unused minutes will roll over every month. So you can accumulate your minutes.

Another thing about free government cell phones is that you have to re-qualify every year for the phone. If your income goes above the limit then you will not qualify for the phone the next year.

Apply for free phones from the government by going to Safelink Wireless. Check to see if the service is available where you live. If so, fill out the application. Then you will have to provide proof of your income or eligibility. This would include showing your W2, pay stubs for the past few months, letter of employment, or some documents proving that you are getting benefits from other government programs. After they verify your documents, they will send you your free government phone for low income people which you can begin using.