Can't reach California CalFresh? Claimyr connects you to a live DSS agent in minutes.
Claimyr is a pay-as-you-go service. We do not charge a recurring subscription.
Using Claimyr will:
- Connect you to a human agent at the DSS
- Skip the long phone menu
- Call the correct department
- Redial until on hold
- Forward a call to your phone with reduced hold time
- Give you free callbacks if the DSS drops your call
If I could give 10 stars I would
If I could give 10 stars I would If I could give 10 stars I would Such an amazing service so needed during the times when EDD almost never picks up Claimyr gets me on the phone with EDD every time without fail faster. A much needed service without Claimyr I would have never received the payment I needed to support me during my postpartum recovery. Thank you so much Claimyr!
Really made a difference
Really made a difference, save me time and energy from going to a local office for making the call.
Worth not wasting your time calling for hours.
Was a bit nervous or untrusting at first, but my calls went thru. First time the wait was a bit long but their customer chat line on their page was helpful and put me at ease that I would receive my call. Today my call dropped because of EDD and Claimyr heard my concern on the same chat and another call was made within the hour.
An incredibly helpful service
An incredibly helpful service! Got me connected to a CA EDD agent without major hassle (outside of EDD's agents dropping calls – which Claimyr has free protection for). If you need to file a new claim and can't do it online, pay the $ to Claimyr to get the process started. Absolutely worth it!
Consistent,frustration free, quality Service.
Used this service a couple times now. Before I'd call 200 times in less than a weak frustrated as can be. But using claimyr with a couple hours of waiting i was on the line with an representative or on hold. Dropped a couple times but each reconnected not long after and was mission accomplished, thanks to Claimyr.
IT WORKS!! Not a scam!
I tried for weeks to get thru to EDD PFL program with no luck. I gave this a try thinking it may be a scam. OMG! It worked and They got thru within an hour and my claim is going to finally get paid!! I upgraded to the $60 call. Best $60 spent!
Ask the community...
- DO post questions about your issues.
- DO answer questions and support each other.
- DO post tips & tricks to help folks.
- DO NOT post call problems here - there is a support tab at the top for that :)
Join the conversation
Join the conversation
I went through this exact same situation last year when I moved from Fresno to Kern County! The app confusion is so stressful when you're trying to budget for groceries. One thing that really helped me was writing down the phone number from the back of my EBT card and keeping it in my phone contacts as "EBT Balance Check" so I could quickly call anytime I needed to verify my balance while the app was being weird. Also, pro tip - if you're shopping and want to be extra sure about your balance before checkout, most grocery stores will let you do a balance inquiry at the card reader before you start shopping. Just select "EBT" and then "Balance Inquiry" instead of payment. That way you know exactly what you have to spend without any surprises at the register! The app will eventually catch up, but in the meantime the phone system and balance inquiry at stores are your best friends. Hang in there!
Caleb Stark
•This is such great advice! I never thought about doing a balance inquiry at the store first - that would definitely save me from any awkward moments at checkout. I'm definitely adding that EBT number to my contacts too. It's so helpful to hear from someone who went through the same thing. Makes me feel less alone in dealing with all this confusion! Thank you for the practical tips.
This is such a common issue and it's frustrating how little guidance they give you about what to expect during the transfer process! I went through something similar when I moved from Orange County to Ventura County last fall. One thing I learned is that even though your benefits transfer over, sometimes your PIN might get reset during the process (happened to my neighbor). If you have any issues using your card after confirming your balance is there, you might need to call and reset your PIN. The customer service rep can walk you through it over the phone. Also, keep all your paperwork from both counties during the transition period! I had to prove my transfer date later when there was a mix-up with my recertification notice. Having those documents saved me a lot of headaches. Glad to hear you were able to confirm your benefits are actually on your card! The phone system really is more reliable than the app, especially during transfers.
Join the conversation
Mei Lin
I just wanted to thank everyone for the helpful information! I reported my rent and utility increases to the county yesterday and they said my benefits might increase next month. Much better than waiting for a stimulus that doesn't exist! 😊
GalacticGuru
•Great job taking action! That's exactly the right approach. Remember that medical expenses (if you have household members who are elderly or disabled) and childcare costs can also be deducted to potentially increase your benefit amount. Make sure all eligible expenses are documented when you submit your next SAR7.
As a newcomer here, I really appreciate this thorough discussion! I was about to fall for one of those misleading articles myself. It's so helpful to see experienced community members clarifying these myths. I'm curious though - for those of us who are struggling with rising food costs, are there any other California-specific programs we should know about besides CFAP? I keep hearing about different county-level assistance but it's hard to know what's legitimate vs what's outdated information online.
Join the conversation
Yuki Tanaka
my sister works for the county and she says they r SUPER behind right now cuz of staff shortages so thats probs why ur waiting so long
UPDATE: I went to the county office this morning and waited about 2 hours, but it was worth it! Turns out they had been trying to call me for an interview but the number in their system (not BenefitsCal) was wrong - they had transposed two digits. The worker did my interview right there and approved me on the spot since I had all my documents with me. She said my EBT card should arrive in 7-10 days and my benefits will be available as soon as I activate it! So relieved!
Wow, a wrong phone number in their system - that's so frustrating but I'm glad you got it sorted out! This is really helpful to know that their internal system can have different info than BenefitsCal. I'm dealing with a delayed application too and this gives me hope that going in person might be the way to go. Congrats on getting approved!
Fiona Sand
•This is such an important lesson for everyone! The fact that their internal system had different contact info than what you verified in BenefitsCal is a perfect example of why going in person can be so much more effective than trying to navigate the phone system. Your story will definitely help other people who are stuck in similar situations. Glad you got your approval and won't have to stress about this anymore!
Join the conversation
My friend got a flyer about some town hall meeting where they are discussing the benefits increase. I think its happening at the community center next week. Maybe you could go and ask questions?
Chris Elmeda
•That's likely a community meeting about local food resources rather than an official announcement about CalFresh increases. The COLA is determined at the federal level by USDA, not at local town halls. But these community meetings can be great sources of information about additional food resources in your area, so still worth attending.
Luca Russo
I'm new to CalFresh and this thread has been super helpful! Just wanted to add that I found the official USDA Food and Nutrition Service website has a section where they post the annual benefit adjustments once they're finalized. It's usually updated around late August/early September. The URL is fns.usda.gov if anyone wants to bookmark it for official updates rather than relying on rumors. Also, @Hailey O'Leary definitely report that childcare expense ASAP - that could make a huge difference in your monthly benefits while you're waiting for any COLA increase!
CosmicCowboy
•Thanks for sharing that official USDA link @Luca Russo! As someone who's been on CalFresh for about 6 months now, I've learned the hard way that there's so much misinformation floating around about benefit changes. Having an official source to check is really valuable. I've been following this whole conversation and it's wild how much I didn't know - like the childcare deduction thing that @Hailey O'Leary discovered. Makes me wonder what other deductions I might be missing out on. Going to definitely bookmark that USDA site and maybe review my own case to see if I'm claiming everything I'm entitled to.
Darren Brooks
I'm going through this exact same situation right now! Got my EBT card yesterday and called to check - completely empty. It's so nerve-wracking when you're planning your grocery budget around those benefits. Reading all these responses is making me feel so much better though. Sounds like this delay between card arrival and benefit loading is totally normal, even if it's super frustrating. I'm going to try calling the EBT customer service line tomorrow morning to see if they can confirm my benefits are "pending" like Diego suggested. Really wish they would update those approval letters to warn people about this timing issue! Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - it helps to know we're not alone in dealing with this.
0 coins
Paolo Rizzo
•I'm so glad you found this thread helpful! It's crazy how common this issue is but nobody really talks about it until you're going through it yourself. I just went through the same thing last month and was panicking that something went wrong with my application. Definitely try calling the EBT customer service line like Diego mentioned - they were super helpful when I called and could confirm that my benefits were approved and just waiting to load. It really does seem like the system updates overnight, so checking first thing in the morning is your best bet. Fingers crossed for both of us that our benefits show up soon! The waiting game is so stressful when you're trying to plan meals for the week.
0 coins
Harold Oh
This is such a helpful thread! I'm a new CalFresh recipient and was wondering about this exact timing issue. My card should be arriving any day now and I was expecting the benefits to be available immediately based on the approval letter. It's really good to know that there's usually a 1-3 day delay after receiving the card before benefits actually load. I'll make sure to plan my grocery shopping accordingly and not panic if the balance shows zero at first. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - this kind of real-world info is so much more useful than the official letters that don't explain these details!
0 coins