P-EBT benefits application process starts Monday

The application process for a Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) opens Monday, June 1.

This one-time food benefit is for families who lost access to free or reduced-price meals due to school closures. P-EBT benefits can total up to $285 and will be issued on an EBT card to assist families as a result of the unanticipated school closure due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Families who received SNAP benefits for the month of March 2020 and have children 5-18 years old as of May 17, 2020, do not need to apply for those children. These families should have received P-EBT benefits on their current Lone Star Card by Friday, May 22. No further action is required of you.

Families with children up to 21 years old who were certified to receive free or reduced-price meals during the 2019-20 school year need to apply for P-EBT. (This includes families who received SNAP benefits for the month of March 2020 and have children under 5 and between 19 and 21.) These families will need to apply for P-EBT benefits online. You will have until June 30, 2020, to complete the application. Once approved, a P-EBT card will be mailed to your household.

You will have one year, from the date the benefits were issued, to use your P-EBT food benefits. P-EBT benefits are non-transferrable.

For more information, please visit hhs.texas.gov/PEBT. The Texas Department of Health and Human Services will have a P-EBT call center available on Monday, June 1, when the application is available.