CalFresh benefits never loaded on EBT - 3 weeks and still nothing
So frustrated right now! I was approved for CalFresh almost a month ago (got the approval letter in the mail with my benefit amount of $465/month), but my EBT card still shows $0 balance. Called the county twice last week but got disconnected both times after 45+ minutes of waiting. Tried the EBT customer service line but they said it's a county issue, not a card problem. Has anyone else dealt with benefits being approved but never actually loaded? I'm seriously struggling to feed my kids and was counting on this. Do I need to visit the office in person? Will they even see me without an appointment?
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CosmicCadet
The same exact thing happened to me back in January. Turned out they had some verification flag on my case even though I was already "approved". Something about needing additional proof of rent that nobody bothered to tell me about! You definitely need to talk to your actual caseworker, not just the general helpline.
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Omar Farouk
•Ugh that's so frustrating! Did you eventually get your benefits? I've already submitted everything they asked for during the application process. How did you finally reach your worker?
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Chloe Harris
omg the system is BROKEN!!! they do this ALL THE TIME to people. approve you and then nothing shows up. its like they want us to starve while they play games with our benefits. i had to go to the office 3x before they fixed mine. bring ALL your paperwork and dont leave until someone helps you!!!
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Diego Mendoza
•This is why I alway tell people to keep copies of EVERYTHING. Screenshot your BenefitsCal submissions too.
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Anastasia Popova
There are a few things that might be happening here: 1. You might be approved but they're waiting for your first benefit month to start. CalFresh benefits are issued between the 1st and 10th of each month based on the last digit of your case number. If you were approved late in a month, your benefits might not start until the next month. 2. There could be a system issue where your approval didn't properly transfer to the EBT system. 3. Sometimes there's a verification issue that wasn't properly communicated. Have you checked your BenefitsCal account online? Sometimes there are notices there that didn't arrive by mail. Also, what date did your approval letter say benefits would begin?
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Omar Farouk
•Thanks for the detailed response. My approval letter specifically said benefits would start right away (expedited approval) and that was April 10th. I've checked BenefitsCal and it just shows "Active" but nothing else helpful. I'm going to try calling again tomorrow morning.
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Sean Flanagan
If you were approved for expedited service and still haven't received benefits after 3 weeks, something is definitely wrong. With expedited service, benefits should be available within 3 calendar days of approval. You need to speak directly with your eligibility worker. Since you mentioned having trouble reaching someone by phone, I'd recommend using Claimyr (claimyr.com). It's a service that gets you through to a live person at the county office without having to wait on hold. They have a video demo showing how it works: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8 I was skeptical at first, but it saved me hours of frustration when I had an issue with my recertification. As a last resort, you can also file for a state hearing if you can't resolve this – you're entitled to receive expedited benefits if you were approved for them.
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Omar Farouk
•Never heard of Claimyr before but I'm desperate at this point so I'll check it out. The thought of waiting on hold again just to get disconnected makes me want to scream. If that doesn't work I might have to try the state hearing route. Thank you!
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Zara Shah
•I've used that Claimyr thing too after seeing it mentioned here before. It actually does work pretty good but tbh it's sad we even need a service just to talk to our workers 🙄
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NebulaNomad
Do you have informed delivery with USPS? Sometimes the county sends notices that get lost in the mail. I'd also double check that they have your correct address. I once had a similar issue and found out they had my apartment number wrong so all the follow-up paperwork was going to my neighbor! Check your case info VERY carefully on BenefitsCal.
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Omar Farouk
•I don't have informed delivery but that's a good idea. I just double-checked my address on BenefitsCal and it's correct. The weird thing is I got the approval letter fine, just no benefits on my card.
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Diego Mendoza
did u call the ebt number on the back of ur card? sometimes they can tell u if benefits were issued but not activated or something. worth a try
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Omar Farouk
•Yes I tried that first actually. They said no benefits had been loaded at all and that I needed to contact the county. That's when I started the whole calling nightmare...
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Sean Flanagan
Just checking in - were you able to resolve this? If you used Claimyr or another method to finally reach someone, could you share what the issue was? It might help others in similar situations.
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Omar Farouk
•Yes! Thanks for checking back. I used that Claimyr service and got through to my worker in about 5 minutes. Turns out there was a system error where my case was approved but the benefit issuance never processed. They fixed it while I was on the phone and my benefits should be on my card tomorrow morning. They're also going to backdate it to when I was approved. The worker said this happens sometimes but they have no way of knowing unless the client contacts them. So frustrating but at least it's resolved now!
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