EBT cash benefits are a form of financial aid provided by the government to eligible low-income individuals and families. EBT stands for Electronic Benefit Transfer, and it is the required way for recipients of CalFresh, CalWORKs, Refugee, and General Assistance to receive benefits. EBT cash benefits are attained through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, a federally funded program run by individual states. These benefits essentially allow the EBT card to be used like a debit card, and EBT cardholders can get cash while checking out or withdraw cash from an ATM with their EBT card to pay for rent, utilities, childcare costs, and more.

EBT in California is run by the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) with technical support through the Office of System Integration (OSI). CDSS contracts with private vendors to run the technical operations of the program, and each county determines benefit eligibility for applicants. Once determined, the county sends the eligibility information to the state EBT vendor where it is processed and ultimately disbursed to recipients EBT accounts.

EBT cash benefits can be used to purchase a wide variety of items, including food, clothing, household supplies, and personal care items. However, they still come with certain restrictions to ensure the funds are used appropriately. EBT cash benefits can be accessed with an EBT cash benefits card, which allows recipients to get cashback at the register or withdraw funds from an ATM.

If you are a retailer and your state qualifies for EBT cash benefits, you can accept them at your store just like regular EBT cards. To process these benefits, you can get set up with an EBT processor like goEBT.

It is important to note that the money sent to EBT Cards comes from a range of different schemes, which each have their own payment schedules. In California, EBT cardholders can use their benefit cards for online purchasing at Safeway, Amazon, Walmart, and more.