If food stamps were stolen off your EBT card, change your PIN right now and report the theft to your state SNAP office the same day. Whether you can get the money back depends on when the theft happened: federal authority to replace electronically stolen SNAP benefits expired on December 20, 2024, so thefts within the October 1, 2022 through December 20, 2024 window may still qualify for replacement, while thefts after that date generally do not unless your state has chosen to pay out of its own funds.1U.S. Department of Agriculture. Sunset of Replacement of Stolen Benefits Plans
Do These Three Things Today
Pull up your transaction history through the ConnectEBT app, your state’s cardholder website, or by calling the customer service number on the back of your card. Write down every charge you don’t recognize, with the date, dollar amount, and store location. You’ll need this list for your claim.
Change your PIN. This is the single fastest way to stop a thief who has cloned your card from making more purchases. Don’t reuse an old PIN and don’t pick something guessable like a birthday. USDA recommends changing your PIN at least monthly, and especially right before your benefits are deposited.2U.S. Department of Agriculture. EBT Card Skimming Prevention
Report the theft to your local SNAP office.3Food and Nutrition Service. Addressing Stolen SNAP Benefits A police report is not required by federal rules, though some states may ask for one. Filing one anyway builds a paper trail that helps if your claim is later questioned.
How to File a Replacement Claim
Replacement runs through your state SNAP agency, not through a federal office. You’ll complete a stolen benefits form, usually found on the state agency’s website or at a local human services office. The form asks for your EBT card number, each unauthorized transaction, and a signed statement that no one in your household made those purchases. Providing false information carries fraud penalties, so be accurate.
Most states let you submit the form online, by mail, or in person. If you mail it, certified mail gives you proof of the date the agency received it. Some states also take reports through a dedicated fraud hotline.
Watch the deadline. Many state plans require you to file within 30 days of discovering the unauthorized transactions. Miss it and your claim can be denied on timeliness alone, no matter how legitimate the theft. Once the agency reviews your claim, you’ll get a written decision. If it’s approved, the replacement benefits go directly onto your EBT card.
Whether Federal Replacement Still Covers Your Theft
The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 created a temporary federal program that let states replace SNAP benefits stolen through electronic fraud. It covered thefts between October 1, 2022 and September 30, 2024, and a later continuing resolution extended coverage through December 20, 2024.3Food and Nutrition Service. Addressing Stolen SNAP Benefits
For thefts inside that window, two caps apply. You can receive no more than two replacement issuances per federal fiscal year (October 1 through September 30). And each replacement cannot exceed the actual amount stolen or two months of your normal benefit allotment, whichever is less.3Food and Nutrition Service. Addressing Stolen SNAP Benefits If a thief drained $800 but your monthly allotment is $300, the most you can recover is $600.
One boundary worth knowing: you had to have your physical card in your possession at the time of the theft. If your card was lost or physically stolen and someone used it, that falls outside the electronic theft program. The program covers skimming, cloning, phishing, and similar remote fraud methods, not situations where the card itself was taken.
If your theft falls within the covered window and you haven’t filed yet, you can still submit a claim. States must process eligible claims from that window even though the program has sunset, as long as the claim meets the requirements in the state’s approved plan.1U.S. Department of Agriculture. Sunset of Replacement of Stolen Benefits Plans Don’t assume it’s too late without asking your local office.
If Your Benefits Were Stolen After December 20, 2024
Federal authority to replace electronically stolen SNAP benefits expired on December 20, 2024. The American Relief Act, 2025 did not extend it.1U.S. Department of Agriculture. Sunset of Replacement of Stolen Benefits Plans If your theft happened on or after December 21, 2024, there is currently no federal replacement program.
States can choose to replace stolen benefits using their own funds, but there’s no guarantee the federal government will ever reimburse those expenditures.1U.S. Department of Agriculture. Sunset of Replacement of Stolen Benefits Plans Whether your state has chosen to do so varies. Call your state SNAP agency and ask directly whether any replacement option exists for recent thefts, and still report the theft in writing so it’s on record.
Appealing a Denial
If your claim is denied, the written notice must explain your right to appeal. Common denial reasons include filing after the reporting deadline, a theft date outside the covered window, not having the card in your possession at the time of the fraud, or missing information on the form.
An appeal usually means requesting a fair hearing through your state’s administrative process. You can bring evidence: transaction records showing purchases in a city or state far from where you were, work schedules, medical appointments, or anything else placing you somewhere other than the fraud location. In most states, replacement benefits will not be issued while a denial is under appeal, and the process can drag on for weeks. That’s why it pays to file an accurate, complete claim the first time.
How to Keep This From Happening Again
With federal replacement unavailable for current thefts, prevention is doing most of the work. USDA recommends several steps that meaningfully reduce risk.2U.S. Department of Agriculture. EBT Card Skimming Prevention
- Lock your card between uses. Many states offer a card lock feature in the ConnectEBT app or website. A locked card blocks all transactions, even from a cloned copy. Unlock it at the register, then lock it again as soon as you’re done.
- Block out-of-state and online transactions if you don’t need them. Cloned cards are often used in a different state from where the cardholder lives, so turning those off closes a common avenue.
- Turn on transaction alerts. Text or email notifications from your EBT processor let you catch unauthorized activity within minutes rather than days.
- Change your PIN monthly, and always before your benefit deposit date. Thieves sometimes sit on stolen card data waiting for fresh benefits to land.
- Inspect card readers before you swipe. Wiggle the reader; skimming overlays are often loose. If something feels off, use a different terminal or pay at the customer service counter.
USDA has published a new EBT chip card standard, and some states have begun issuing chip-enabled EBT cards, which are far harder to skim than magnetic stripe cards.4Food and Nutrition Service. SNAP EBT Modernization The rollout isn’t nationwide yet. If your state offers a chip card, ask for one. Until it arrives, the lock feature and frequent PIN changes are the strongest defense you have.