SNAP benefits expire on two separate clocks. New monthly deposits stop when your certification period ends, which is usually somewhere between 6 and 24 months after approval. Money already loaded on your EBT card follows its own rule: after nine months without any card activity, unused funds are permanently removed by the state. So the question of when SNAP benefits expire really has two answers, and knowing both is what keeps you from losing money you were counting on.
How Long Your Certification Period Lasts
When your state approves you for SNAP, it assigns a certification period. That’s the window during which monthly benefits get deposited to your card. Most households fall between 6 and 24 months, though periods can run as short as one month or as long as 36 months in certain cases.
The length tracks how stable your circumstances are. Households where every adult is elderly or has a disability generally receive 24 months. Households with earned or unearned income commonly get 12 months. Households with no income, migrant or seasonal farmworker households, and those with only exempt income are typically assigned six months because their situations change more often.
Through the Elderly Simplified Application Project, households where every member is age 60 or older with no earned income can qualify for a 36-month certification period, a waived recertification interview, and more flexible verification. 1Food and Nutrition Service. Elderly Simplified Application Project Not every state runs the program, so check with your local SNAP office.
Your exact end date is printed on your approval letter. Most state EBT portals and mobile apps also display the certification period once you register your card.
When Unused Money on Your Card Gets Removed
Benefits already deposited to your EBT card don’t disappear the moment your certification period ends. They stay on the card and can still be spent. The real risk is inactivity. If you stop using the card, the state will eventually expunge the balance for good.
Federal rules give states two ways to do this, and each state picks one:
- Inactive account approach: If your EBT account has no activity for nine months (274 days), the state begins expunging benefits at the monthly allotment level as each allotment reaches the nine-month mark. Any single transaction resets the clock for all remaining benefits on the account.
- Unused allotment approach: Each monthly allotment is individually expunged nine months (274 days) after it was issued, regardless of whether you’ve used the card for other purchases. A recent purchase does not protect older deposits under this method.
Under either method, the state must send you a written notice at least 30 days before expungement begins. The notice includes the scheduled expungement date and the steps you can take to prevent it, including asking that any benefits moved to off-line storage be restored to your account. 2eCFR. 7 CFR 274.2 – Providing Benefits to Participants
There’s an earlier trigger too. After just three months (91 days) of inactivity, the state may move your benefits to off-line storage. The money isn’t gone at that stage, but you’d need to contact your state agency to have it restored to the active card before you can spend it. 2eCFR. 7 CFR 274.2 – Providing Benefits to Participants
What Counts as Card Activity
Activity means any transaction you initiate that changes your EBT balance. A grocery purchase counts. Returning an item for a credit counts. Checking your balance does not count, and neither does the state depositing a new monthly allotment. To keep funds safe, run at least one purchase through the card within every nine-month window. 2eCFR. 7 CFR 274.2 – Providing Benefits to Participants
How to Check Your Balance and End Date
The fastest way to see your current balance is to look at the bottom of your last purchase receipt, where the remaining balance is usually printed. You can also call the customer service number on the back of your EBT card for automated balance information.
Most states offer online portals or mobile apps where you can register your card to view your balance, review transaction history, and confirm when your certification period ends. The specific portal varies by state. Your approval letter also lists your certification end date, so keep that document somewhere you can find it.
Recertifying Before Your Period Ends
Recertification is how you extend benefits past your current certification period. Your state agency mails a Notice of Expiration before the start of the last month of your certification period. Federal rules require the notice to arrive during the second-to-last month, giving you roughly 30 days to act. 3GovInfo. 7 CFR 273.14 – Recertification
The renewal packet typically includes a recertification form you can submit online, by mail, or in person. You’ll need to provide updated information about your household:
- Income: Wages, Social Security, pensions, disability payments, and any other money coming in.
- Household composition: Who lives with you and their ages.
- Expenses: Rent or mortgage, utilities, dependent care, and medical costs for elderly or disabled members.
A phone interview is usually part of the process. If your packet doesn’t include a scheduled interview time, expect a call from your local SNAP office to set one up. Submit everything before the deadline on your notice. Miss it, and your benefits will lapse; wait too long and you may have to start the application from scratch.
Interim Reports Can End Benefits Mid-Period
Your certification end date isn’t the only way monthly deposits can stop. Partway through a longer certification period, most states require an interim report, and missing it terminates benefits.
If your certification period is longer than six months, the state generally requires a periodic report between the fourth and sixth month. The report asks about changes to your income, household size, and expenses since your last certification. If you miss the filing date, the state must send a reminder giving you 10 more days to respond. If you still don’t file, benefits are terminated. 4eCFR. 7 CFR 273.12 – Reporting Requirements
Households where every adult is elderly or has a disability and nobody has earned income get a break. If the certification period is 12 months or shorter, these households are fully exempt from interim reports. For certification periods of 13 to 24 months, they only need to file once a year. 4eCFR. 7 CFR 273.12 – Reporting Requirements
What Happens After Your Eligibility Ends
When your certification period expires without recertification, or when the state finds you no longer eligible, new monthly deposits stop. Any balance still on your EBT card remains yours to spend, subject to the nine-month expungement rules above. The card itself isn’t deactivated for existing funds just because new deposits stopped.
You can reapply at any time if your circumstances change. There’s no waiting period. Households in urgent need may qualify for expedited processing, which requires the state to load benefits within seven calendar days. You’re entitled to expedited service if any of the following applies in the month you submit your application:
- Low income and resources: Household monthly gross income under $150 and liquid resources (cash, checking, and savings) at $100 or less.
- Destitute farmworker: A migrant or seasonal farmworker household with liquid resources of $100 or less.
- Housing costs exceed resources: Combined monthly gross income and liquid resources less than monthly rent or mortgage plus utilities.
One Other Way Benefits Can End
Separate from the certification clock, SNAP work requirements can cut benefits off. Most recipients between ages 16 and 59 must register for work, accept a suitable job, and not voluntarily quit or drop below 30 hours a week without good reason. Able-bodied adults without dependents face a stricter rule: without meeting a work requirement of at least 80 hours per month, they can receive SNAP for only three months within any three-year period. The age range subject to this time limit was expanded by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025, and USDA is still issuing implementation guidance, so check with your local SNAP office for current thresholds. 6Food and Nutrition Service. SNAP Work Requirements