CalFresh benefits not deposited after recertification approval - can't reach worker for weeks!

omg the EXACT same thing happened to me in december!! my recert was approved but no benefits loaded. turned out they needed additional income verification for my part time job even tho i sent all that with my recert?? but they never bothered to call or send anything telling me that! i only found out when i FINALLY got thru to a worker after 2 weeks of trying. check ur benefitscal messages too sometimes they put stuff there but dont send the email notification

Thanks for the suggestion! I just checked BenefitsCal and there's nothing in my messages. Not a single notification about anything missing. My dashboard shows the recertification as

This is unfortunately a common issue right now. The counties are experiencing major backlogs with benefit issuance after recertification, even when the recertification itself shows as approved. Here's what you need to know:\n\n1. Your benefits remain active even if they haven't been issued yet\n2. Once they fix the issue, you should receive all backdated benefits you're entitled to\n3. To escalate this issue, request a \

Thank you so much for this detailed info! I had no idea about the \

did u check if ur over the IRT? that happened to my cousin, she got a tiny raise but it put her over the income reporting threshold thingy and they just cut her off without even telling her!!

No, my income is definitely under the IRT. I'm only working part-time making about $1,450/month, and there's just me and my daughter in our household. I'm pretty sure the IRT for a household of 2 is way higher than that. But thanks for mentioning it - I'll double check when I finally reach someone!

Have you tried using Claimyr to get through to a live person? I was in a similar situation last month and couldn't get through to anyone for days. Then someone recommended Claimyr.com to me - they basically wait on hold for you and call you back when a real person is on the line. I used their video demo at https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8 to see how it works first. Within an hour I was talking to an actual caseworker who fixed my issue. It was seriously a game-changer for getting through the phone system. Might be worth trying since you can't go in person right now.

I've never heard of this service! That sounds like exactly what I need right now since I can't physically go to the office. I'll definitely check out that video and give it a try. At this point I'm willing to try anything. Thanks so much for the recommendation.

THEY DO THIS ALL THE TIME!!! The system is designed to make you give up. I've had my benefits \

That's so disheartening to hear this happens regularly :( I really can't go in person right now since I'm out of state, but as soon as I get back I'll definitely try that approach if nothing else works. It's wild that they can just leave people without food access with zero communication.

Could it be a systems issue with your EBT card itself? Sometimes the cards malfunction or get deactivated if not used for a while. Have you tried checking your benefit status through the EBT app or calling the EBT customer service number directly (not the county office)? They can at least tell you if benefits were loaded or not. Also double check that your case wasn't accidentally transferred to another worker during recertification - that happened to me and my approval sat in limbo for weeks because no one was assigned to finalize it.

I didn't think of that! I do use my card regularly though - I used the last of my January benefits just before leaving town. But I'll definitely call EBT customer service directly to check if the card is still active. And I'll ask about the case transfer possibility too. Thanks for these suggestions!

The same happend to me last week! But i found out it was bcuz i didnt send in my electric bill for the utility allowance thing. They didnt tell me tho until i went to the office. My benefits got fixed that day but they still havent loaded on my card yet...its been 5 days ugh

Just to clarify for everyone - utility verification isn't required for basic CalFresh eligibility. You can still get the Standard Utility Allowance (SUA) without providing bills. However, if you want to claim actual utility expenses higher than the standard amount, then yes, you would need documentation. If your benefits were delayed solely due to missing utility verification, you should ask for a supervisor review as that would be an incorrect application of policy.

**UPDATE:** I finally managed to get through to someone! Turns out there was a system error that flagged my case for a non-existent income discrepancy. The worker found my recertification was fully verified and complete, but the system wasn't releasing my benefits. She manually overrode it and my February AND March benefits (since we're halfway through March now) should be on my card within 24 hours. She also put a note that I should be given priority if I call again with any issues. I'm so relieved but still frustrated it took this long with zero communication!

So glad you got it figured out! The system errors happen way too often. Did they say anything about giving you an extra month of benefits since they messed up so bad? sometimes they do that if you ask

No, they didn't mention anything about extra benefits as compensation. Should I call back and ask about that? I wasn't sure if that was something they even did. The stress of not knowing how I'd buy groceries when we get back home was pretty intense.