Waiting for CalFresh approval in Fresno County - typical timelines?

By law, counties have to process CalFresh applications within 30 days of receipt. But Fresno County is usually faster than that in my experience. Most applications are processed within 7-10 business days if you submitted all required verification documents. If they need additional verification from you, it can take longer. Did you get an interview scheduled yet? That's usually the next step after application.

i applied in fresno last month took like 14 days total but only because they needed more docs from me... make sure u check ur BenefitsCal messages and ur mail everyday!! sometimes they send requests there and if u miss it they can deny u

Fresno County is NOTORIOUSLY slow with everything. I applied in December and it took them THREE WEEKS just to call me for the interview. Then another week to approve. And this was after calling them MULTIPLE times!! The system is broken and they don't care that people are waiting for food assistance. They told me they were "backlogged" but that's always their excuse. Hope you have better luck than me but don't hold your breath waiting for Fresno County to move quickly on ANYTHING.

They usually do interviews by phone within a week of applying. Make sure your phone number is correct on your application and that you answer ALL calls even if you don't recognize the number. They often call from blocked numbers and will only try twice before requiring you to reschedule.

When I applied in Fresno last month, it took exactly 9 days from application to approval. They called me on day 4 for a phone interview that lasted about 25 minutes. The worker asked about everyone in my household, our income, expenses, and had me verify some of the documents I submitted. Three days after the interview, I checked BenefitsCal and saw I was approved! Two days later my EBT card arrived in the mail. Have you tried calling the Fresno County self-service line at 1-855-832-8082 to check your status? Sometimes the automated system will tell you if an interview has been scheduled.

While waiting, make sure you have all your verification documents ready: ID for everyone in the household, proof of income for the last 30 days, housing costs (rent receipt or mortgage statement), and utility bills. Having these ready when they contact you will speed up the process significantly. One thing to note - if you indicated on your application that your household has little or no income/resources and needs immediate assistance, you may qualify for expedited services, which means they should process your application within 3 calendar days. If you think you might qualify for this, call and specifically ask about expedited services status.

btw has anyone tried that claimyr service to get thru to fresno county? my cousin used it last month when she couldn't get anyone to pick up about her calfresh application

To follow up on the expedited services question - you qualify for expedited CalFresh if: 1. Your household has less than $150 in monthly gross income and no more than $100 in liquid resources (like cash or bank accounts), OR 2. Your combined monthly gross income and liquid resources are less than your monthly housing costs (rent/mortgage and utilities), OR 3. You're a migrant or seasonal farmworker household with less than $100 in liquid resources. If any of these apply to you, definitely call and request expedited processing. Even if you've already applied, they should still follow the expedited timeline once you request it.

UPDATE: I called the county number and after waiting for 45 minutes, finally got through! They said my application is still pending but scheduled for an interview tomorrow afternoon. The worker mentioned they're currently processing applications from 8-10 days ago, so that matches what several of you said about the timeline. Thanks everyone for your help and advice! Will update again after my interview.