CalFresh EBT notification shows $0 balance despite benefit approval message - what's going on?
Got the strangest thing happen this morning. I received a text notification saying my April CalFresh benefits were deposited, so I quickly checked my EBT card balance through the app. But when I looked, it showed $0!!! I'm 100% positive I was approved for this month - got my approval letter in the mail last week showing $385 in benefits. My recertification was processed in March and everything went smoothly according to my eligibility worker. I even double-checked by calling the EBT balance hotline and it also says $0. Has anyone else experienced this disconnect between getting a deposit notification but nothing actually showing up on your card? I have 3 kids to feed and was counting on those benefits today. Do I need to contact my county office or is there some kind of delay in the system?
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Malia Ponder
ya this hapnd to me in January!! stupid system sends out notices even when the money isnt there yet. check again in like 24hrs sometimes it takes a day for the actual $ to show up on ur card even tho they send the text
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Holly Lascelles
AuthorThanks for responding! So frustrating though, why would they send the notification before actually loading the benefits? I'll check again tomorrow but my kids are hungry now...
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Kyle Wallace
This sounds like a system glitch honestly. Did you report any changes on your SAR7 recently? Sometimes when there's income changes, the system approves you but then calculates a $0 benefit based on new income. What did your approval letter specifically say the benefit amount would be?
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Holly Lascelles
AuthorThe letter definitely showed $385 for April. I did report a small raise on my last SAR7 (about $250 more per month), but the eligibility worker said we still qualified for the full amount due to my childcare expenses. Could reporting that change have caused this issue even though I was told it wouldn't affect my benefits?
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Ryder Ross
The SAME EXACT THING just happened to me!!! Got the text at 6:30am saying benefits deposited but NOTHING on my card. Called the number on back of card THREE TIMES and it keeps saying $0 balance. I'm so ANGRY right now!!! County office doesn't even open until 8am and then good luck getting through to a real person. This system is BROKEN!!!!
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Gianni Serpent
It's definitely frustrating. Have you tried checking BenefitsCal? Sometimes you can see a more detailed status there than what the EBT system shows. Look under the "Messages" section for any notices about your benefits.
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Gianni Serpent
This happens sometimes when there's a timing issue between when the notification system runs and when the actual benefit deposit occurs. A few things to check: 1. Look in BenefitsCal for any notices about benefit changes 2. Check if you hit your Income Reporting Threshold (IRT) with that raise you mentioned 3. Verify your case wasn't accidentally discontinued during recertification If none of those apply, you should definitely contact your county worker directly. It could be a system error they need to fix manually.
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Holly Lascelles
AuthorThanks for the detailed response. I'll check BenefitsCal right now. What exactly is the Income Reporting Threshold? Is that different from the income limit? The raise shouldn't have put me near any limits since I'm still well under the maximum for a family of 4.
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Gianni Serpent
Yes, the IRT is different from the income limit. It's a threshold where you must report income changes before your next SAR7. For a family of 4 in 2025, it's typically around $3,800/month. If your income goes above that, you need to report it within 10 days even if it's not time for your SAR7. But if your worker already knew about the raise and confirmed you still qualify, then it's probably a system issue. Unfortunately, you'll likely need to contact your county office directly. The problem is getting through to them...
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Henry Delgado
I've been in this exact situation and spent DAYS trying to reach someone at my county office. After getting disconnected 5 times and waiting on hold for hours, I found this service called Claimyr that got me through to an actual person in about 20 minutes. It worked really well - they basically call and wait on hold for you, then connect you when a real person answers. Saved me so much frustration. Check it out at claimyr.com - they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8
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Olivia Kay
not to get off topic but does anybody know if we're getting those extra emergency allotments anymore? my neighbor said they ended but i still got extra last month
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Kyle Wallace
The emergency allotments ended for everyone back in 2023, so if you got extra last month, it was probably for a different reason. Maybe your income decreased or your household size changed? That would cause your regular benefits to increase, but it wouldn't be emergency allotments.
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Holly Lascelles
UPDATE: I finally got through to someone at the county office! Turns out there was a SYSTEM ERROR on their end. The worker said several clients had the same issue today. They accidentally ran some kind of "batch processing" that flagged accounts with recent changes for review, even though those changes were already approved. She was able to fix it on her end and said the benefits should load within 24 hours. So thankful I got this resolved! For anyone else experiencing this, definitely contact your county office right away.
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Ryder Ross
OMG thank you for posting this update!! Been trying to get through all morning with no luck. At least now I know what's happening. Did they say if they're fixing it for everyone or do we each need to call individually??
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Holly Lascelles
@Profile7 The worker I spoke with said they're aware of the issue affecting multiple accounts but recommended everyone call individually to get their specific case fixed. She couldn't just apply a blanket fix to all accounts because each one needs to be manually reviewed. She did say they're prioritizing these calls today though, so hopefully you'll get through soon!
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Malia Ponder
classic calfresh mess up lol. at least ur getting it fixed. make sure u check ur balance tomorrow and let us know if it shows up!
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Henry Delgado
For anyone still having trouble reaching someone, I wanted to share that the Claimyr service I mentioned earlier worked for me in a similar situation. Instead of waiting on hold for hours or getting disconnected, they basically navigated the phone tree and waited on hold for me. When they got a real person, they connected me right away. Saved me literally hours of frustration when I had a benefit emergency like this. The video on their site explains it better than I can: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8
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Ryder Ross
Just tried this and it actually worked!! Got through to someone in about 35 minutes instead of being on hold all day. They fixed my account too - same batch processing error. Benefits should be loaded by tomorrow. THANK YOU!!
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Holly Lascelles
FINAL UPDATE: Benefits showed up this morning! Full $385 loaded on my card. So relieved. For anyone else who had this issue, definitely call your county office to get it fixed. Seems like it was a widespread system error. Thanks everyone for your help and suggestions!
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Joshua Hellan
So glad it worked out for you! This system can be so stressful sometimes. Imagine if you hadn't checked or followed up - they might have just kept your benefits in limbo. Always good to stay on top of these things.
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Keisha Jackson
This is such a relief to see resolved! I've been dealing with CalFresh for 2 years now and these kinds of system glitches are way too common. It's scary how many people probably don't follow up and just assume they're not getting benefits when it's actually an error on the county's end. Really appreciate you posting the updates - it helps the rest of us know what to expect and that we need to be persistent in calling when something doesn't look right.
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