CalFresh EBT card for my son shows zero balance - funds not available after receiving card

yes same thing happned to me last month!! the card shows up first then benefits come like 2-3 days later. super confusing bc the letter says one thing but then the card has nothing on it lol

This is actually pretty common with new CalFresh EBT cards. The system processes cards and benefits separately. Your approval letter date starts the clock, but the benefits typically load 1-3 business days after you physically receive the card. It doesn't always sync up perfectly. You can check your balance again tomorrow—it should update. If nothing appears by Friday, then that's when you should contact your county office.

Are you sure your son qualified for his own separate EBT card? Usually households get ONE card for everyone unless there's a specific custody situation. Did you apply for him separately or as part of your household? If you have your own card already with benefits, they might not have issued separate benefits for him.

happened to my niece to. she had to wait like 4 days after getting the card before anything showed up on it. something about system updates only happening at certain times. check again tomorrow!

If you're still having trouble reaching someone at the county office after a few days, I'd recommend trying Claimyr. I was in a similar situation last month and spent HOURS trying to get through to a human being at CalFresh. Claimyr got me connected to a real person in under 10 minutes. They have a system that navigates the phone tree and holds your place in line, then calls you when a real person is available. Saved me so much frustration! Their website is claimyr.com and you can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8

I work with CalFresh recipients regularly, and this is a very common issue. The sequence normally goes: 1. Application approval 2. Card issued/mailed 3. Benefits authorized 4. Benefits loaded onto card Steps 2 and 3 happen in parallel but step 4 can only happen after both 2 and 3 are complete. So you have the card (step 2), but the benefits authorization (step 3) might still be processing. The system typically uploads new benefits in batches overnight, so check again tomorrow morning. If you still don't see anything, call the EBT customer service line again and ask specifically if benefits have been authorized but not loaded yet.

THE COUNTY ALWAYS DOES THIS!!! they send the card then make you wait for money and don't tell you. its so annoying cause you think you can buy food and then NOTHING IS THERE. i had to feed my kids ramen for 3 days waiting for our benefits to show up after getting the card. the system is designed to make us suffer i swear!!!

btw make sure you activated it right? you have to call that number on the sticker and set up your PIN before anything works

I had this exact same issue with my daughter's card a few months ago! The timing is so frustrating because you're expecting the benefits to be ready when the card arrives. In my case, it took exactly 2 business days after receiving the card for the benefits to load. I kept checking the balance multiple times a day (probably drove myself crazy lol). The EBT customer service rep told me that the benefits usually load during overnight processing, so checking first thing in the morning gives you the best chance of seeing the update. Since you got your card today, I'd expect to see the benefits by Thursday morning at the latest. The system is just really slow at syncing everything up, but it will come through!

This is such a common issue and it's really frustrating that they don't explain the timing better in the approval letters! I went through this exact same thing about 6 months ago with my EBT card. The card arrived on a Tuesday and I had zero balance until Thursday morning. What helped me was calling the EBT customer service line (not the county office) and asking them to confirm that my benefits were "pending" in the system. They can actually see if benefits have been authorized but just haven't loaded yet, which gives you peace of mind that everything is working correctly. The rep told me that new benefit loads typically happen between 2-4 AM, so checking your balance after 6 AM gives you the best chance of seeing any updates. Hang in there - it should definitely show up within the next day or two!

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.

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!