system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: How do illegal immigrants apply for welfare if they dont have any social security card or formal identification?

I hear a lot of talk in the American debates about illegal immigration constantly and how they are using welfare. How is this possible if they dont even have the right credentials to sign up for welfare? I cant even get my new drivers license without several forms of ID.
gpt
Under circumstances where you are eligible for such a program, there are usually alternatives to a Social Security Number. For example, illegal aliens can legally receive the child tax credit for their dependents, and can file their tax returns using an IRS-provided International Taxpayer Identification Number instead of an SSN. If you are otherwise eligible for a program, most agencies do not require you to provide an SSN or similar documentation if you can prove you do not have them and cannot obtain them.

As for welfare fraud, illegal aliens who participate in that do it the same way as other people, by making false statements and using false documents. There's a lively market in Social Security cards and birth certificates, which illegal aliens often use without knowing they belong to a real person.

Your driver's license is not a welfare program. Many states try to make it easy to apply for welfare (though others make it hard), because they feel it is important for the poor to have access to these programs, but they make it hard to apply for a driver's license for the first time, because they want to apply extra scrutiny before providing an identification document.