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Food Stamps Schedule: Virginia EBT Benefits for December and Where To Get SNAP Discounts

Prostock-Studio / iStock.com
Prostock-Studio / iStock.com

SNAP helps low-income households purchase the food they need to make nutritious meals at home. In Virginia, SNAP is administered by the Virginia Department of Social Services (DSS), with automatic deposits distributed into SNAP accounts each month. Virginia’s SNAP benefits are only sent out over three days each month, including December 2022.

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Your Virginia EBT card can be used to buy eligible food items from authorized retailers displaying either the Quest logo or a picture of a Virginia EBT card. After swiping your card at checkout and entering your PIN, your receipt will show you the remaining benefits available in your SNAP account.

Use the USDA’s SNAP Retail Locator to locate nearby SNAP-authorized retailers. Your Virginia EBT card can also be used online. Select your state here to find participating online retailers.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has also expanded SNAP eligibility for students enrolled at least half-time in a higher education institution. According to the Virginia DSS, students must either be eligible to participate in state or federally-financed work-study during the regular school year or have an Expected Family Contribution (EFC) of $0 in the current academic year.

How To Score EBT Discounts

You can save money using your Virginia SNAP EBT card. Here are discounts or free services available to SNAP recipients to use in December:

  • Amazon Prime: Virginia SNAP recipients can sign up for an Amazon Prime EBT Discount for $6.99 per month, which is about half the regular cost of a subscription.

  • Farmers’ markets: Look for farmers’ markets that offer “Virginia Fresh Match“, which provides a discount or a match to the amount of SNAP benefits you spend.

  • Museums/zoos/aquariums: The Museums for All initiative in Virginia gives EBT cardholders free or discounted admission to over 900 museums, aquariums and zoos nationwide.

  • Restaurant Meals Program: In Virginia, you can also use your EBT card to purchase hot meals through the Restaurant Meals Program (RMP), available to SNAP recipients.

To check your eligibility or apply for SNAP benefits, you can apply through CommonHelp or fill out an application manually. Select “Application for Benefits” under the forms section and return it to your local department of social services.

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Benefits are sent out on the first, fourth and seventh of every month based on the last digit of your case number. Benefits are added at 12:01 AM on your scheduled date, even if that date falls on a weekend or holiday.

Here is Virginia’s SNAP deposit schedule for December 2022:

Case number ends in:

Benefits available:

0-3

Dec. 1st

4-5

Dec. 4th

6-9

Dec. 7th

SNAP recipients will also receive another big payment in December which includes the 12.5% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) approved for 2023. The COLA for 2023 will run through Sept. 30, 2023, which will help SNAP recipients deal with rising food costs.

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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Food Stamps Schedule: Virginia EBT Benefits for December and Where To Get SNAP Discounts