How to fill out CalFresh travel reimbursement form for county office interviews?

you have to ask for it when ur at the interview. they wont tell u about it unless u specifically ask for the "travel reimbursement form" at the front desk. i did this last month and got $12 for my bus ticket there and back. bring ur receipt!!

The form you're looking for is called the "Travel Expense Claim for CalFresh Interviews" (sometimes just "Travel Reimbursement Form"). You can actually request it ahead of time by calling your county office, but they're not well advertised. Here's how it works: 1. You need to fill out the form with your case number, interview date, and transportation method 2. For public transit: attach receipts 3. For driving: they calculate mileage at the current rate (about 67¢/mile in 2025) 4. You'll need to sign it and submit it at your interview The reimbursement typically comes as a separate payment to your EBT card about 7-10 days after your interview if approved. Not all counties process them quickly though.

No one ever told me about this!!! I've been taking 2 buses and a train to get to my recert interviews for THREE YEARS. Spent like $18 each time. Unbelievable that they hide these benefits from us.

I've been dealing with this travel reimbursement issue recently too. I spent 2 hours trying to get through on the county phone line to ask about it before my recertification interview. Kept getting disconnected or stuck on hold forever. Finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to an actual CalFresh worker in about 10 minutes. They have this system that holds your place in the phone queue and calls you back when a real person answers. Saved me so much frustration! They have a demo video too if you're curious how it works: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8 Anyway, the worker confirmed I could get reimbursed and emailed me the form ahead of time. Made things so much easier.

Make sure you ask about childcare reimbursement too if you have kids! They can cover childcare costs during your interview time but again, they don't advertise it AT ALL. I only found out when another mom in the waiting room told me about it last year. The system is designed to be confusing I swear.

btw if ur interview is for recertificaton you can actually request a phone interview instead of going in person. just tell them u dont have transportation. thats what i did for my last recert and they approved it no problem. saved me the hassle of the bus.

One important thing to note that others haven't mentioned: if you're requesting reimbursement for driving, they'll ask for your vehicle registration and proof of insurance. Make sure to bring copies of those documents with you to the interview along with the completed form. Also, the current mileage rate (67¢/mile) is calculated based on round-trip distance from your home address to the county office. You can use Google Maps to calculate this ahead of time so you know approximately what to expect for reimbursement. The funds should be added to your EBT card within 10 business days after your interview, but sometimes it takes longer depending on county processing times.

One more tip - if you're taking public transit, take a picture of your receipt with your phone as backup. My friend had her bus receipt rejected because it was too faded by the time she got to her interview (those thermal paper receipts fade quickly). Having a clear picture on her phone saved her from losing out on the reimbursement.

Just wanted to add that some counties have online portals where you can download the travel reimbursement form ahead of time. I'm in Sacramento County and found it buried in their "Forms and Applications" section under CalFresh resources. It's worth checking your county's website first before calling - saved me from sitting on hold for hours! Also, if you're using rideshare like Uber or Lyft, keep your receipt from the app as proof. They accepted mine when I had to use it for my emergency interview last month.