TEXAS SNAP BENEFITS
How do I recertify for SNAP in Texas?
Texan beneficiaries of the SNAP food aid scheme must periodically reapply. We take a look at the steps you need to follow to recertify for benefits.
Texan beneficiaries of the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) can use the Your Texas Benefits online portal to reapply for food aid at the end of their certification period.
SNAP recipients in the Lone Star State, where the Texas Health and Human Services Commission runs the program, must recertify periodically in order to avoid losing their benefits. Recertification - which tends to be required every six months - is mandatory even if your situation has not changed.
How to know if it’s time to recertify Texas SNAP benefits
If you sign up for an account on Your Texas Benefits, the platform will let you know when it is time to reapply for SNAP benefits. Log into your account, and the message ‘ready for renewal’ will appear in the ‘manage’ screen if you certification period is about to end.
You can also get Your Texas Benefits to send you an alert when you’re up for renewal. To activate this notification, go to the ‘message center’ inside your account, and select ‘alert settings’.
What’s more, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission says it will mail a renewal reminder to benefits recipients, or email it if they have opted to go paperless.
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How to reapply for Texas SNAP benefits
In the Your Texas Benefits portal, log into your account and go to the ‘manage’ screen. Select the case up for recertification, and click on ‘renew benefits’. After checking your case information and updating it where necessary, submit your application.
You can follow the progress of your renewal application in the ‘case activity’ screen.
If you’d rather apply for SNAP recertification by submitting a paper form, you can download it or ask for it to be sent to you by mail on Your Texas Benefits.
What’s the deadline to recertify Texas SNAP benefits?
SNAP recipients in Texas are given until the 15th day of the final month of their certification period to submit their renewal.
When and how are Texas SNAP benefits paid out?
Monthly SNAP benefits are loaded onto a special debit card known in Texas as the Lone Star Card.
The date on which Lone Star Cards are topped up depends on the last digit of the recipient’s case number. Money is usually sent out between the 1st and the 15th of the month; to check when your food stamps will be issued, take a look at the Texas Health and Human Services Commission’s benefits schedule.