CalFresh EBT renewal stuck after submitting March self-employment income - what now?

Don't submit a new application! That will mess up your current case and probably cause even more delays. Self-employment verification takes longer to process because they have to manually calculate your income after expenses. What you should do is call your county worker directly (not the main line) or submit a message through BenefitsCal asking for status. If you don't hear back within 3 business days, you should request a supervisor. The county has 30 days to process recertifications, so they're still within timeframe, but you're right to follow up.

OMG THIS HAPPENS TO ME EVERY TIME!!! They make self-employed people jump through so many hoops its ridiculous!! One time they made me resubmit everything THREE TIMES because they kept "losing" my documents even though I had confirmation numbers!!! The system is designed to frustrate us into giving up our benefits!!!

Recently used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an actual person at my county office after weeks of trying to follow up on my self-employment verification. They got me connected to a real worker in about 15 minutes instead of hours on hold. The worker was able to tell me exactly what was missing from my documentation and I got my benefits approved the next day. You can see how it works in their video demo: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8. Totally worth it for peace of mind.

You dont needa apply again, they just SLOW with self employment stuff. i had same problem last year becuz they gotta calculate evrything different than regular jobs. Send a message on benefitscal AND call, do both! sometimes they extend ur benefits while they process stuff so chek ur balance on the 1st

I work as an eligibility worker (not in your county) but I can tell you that self-employment verification takes longer because we have to average your income and expenses over time. Three weeks is actually pretty normal processing time, especially if you're close to your recertification date. Here's what I recommend: 1. Log into BenefitsCal and check your task list. If they need additional verification, it should be listed there. 2. Send a message through the portal specifically asking if they need any additional information to complete your recertification. 3. If your benefits do expire before they complete processing, they will issue retroactive benefits once approved. 4. Document everything - save screenshots of what you've submitted with dates. As policy, we have 30 days to process a recertification, so technically they're still within timeframe.

This happened to me too!!! I waited 5 weeks and finally called and they said they never got my documents even though I had confirmation!! Always call to follow up!! Don't trust the system!! I had to resubmit everything and wait another 2 weeks!!!

just wondering, what kind of self employment do you have? i'm thinking about starting my own business but worried about how it affects my benefits

Just to follow up on this thread - if your benefits do end up expiring before they complete processing your recertification, make sure to immediately call and request "expedited services" while your recertification is processing. If you have less than $150 in monthly income and less than $100 in liquid resources, or if your housing costs are more than your income, you qualify for expedited services which means they must provide benefits within 3 calendar days. Many eligibility workers don't automatically check for this, so you need to specifically request it.

Also make sure your income is under the IRT (Income Reporting Threshold) or they'll cut you off! For a household of 3 in 2025 it's around $3,700 I think. Did you make more than your IRT in any month?

I'm a newcomer here but dealing with something similar! I'm self-employed doing home tutoring and my recertification has been pending for almost a month now. Reading through all these responses is really helpful - I didn't know about the 30-day processing timeframe or that I could request expedited services if my benefits expire. I've been panicking thinking I'd have to start over. Going to try sending a message through BenefitsCal today and document everything like Anastasia suggested. It's reassuring to know this delay is somewhat normal for self-employment cases, even though it's stressful when you have kids depending on these benefits.