Alabama EBT and Food Assistance Program (SNAP)

MyDHR, and ACES in five pilot counties

To apply online, first register for a MyDHR account. The finished application goes to the DHR office in your county. If you already get benefits, the same account lets you see your case, recertify, report changes and turn in your six-month report³.

DHR is folding 12 older eligibility systems into one, the Alabama Combined Eligibility System (ACES). The pilot began October 5, 2026, in Montgomery, Elmore, Tuscaloosa, Dallas and Talladega counties. Clients there use the ACES self-service portal to apply, check an application's status and send renewal documents. DHR plans, tentatively, to take ACES statewide in January 2027, and says the switch does not change deposit dates or benefit amounts⁴. OneAlabama, DHR's app, handles Family Assistance (TANF) and JOBS, not food assistance³⁰.

MyDHR

The chip EBT card, ConnectEBT and the out-of-state block

DHR announced it would negotiate its EBT contract with Conduent State and Local Solutions¹⁴. Conduent's ConnectEBT app, which DHR calls "the only authorized EBT app" for Alabama clients, shows your balance and transactions, changes your PIN and orders a replacement card. Search "ConnectEBT" in the App Store or Google Play¹³. You can also check the balance at connectebt.com or at the number on the back of the card¹².

After a December 2025 test in 11 counties, DHR mailed a chip card to every cardholder in February 2026^8,9. Activate it within 180 days at 1-800-997-8888. You will need the card number, your date of birth, your ZIP code, the 3-digit security code and the expiration date (which applies to the card, not your benefits). Then destroy the old card. Insert the chip rather than swiping^8,9.

Since January 22, 2026, every card is set to "Block High-Risk Transactions": purchases in Alabama stores work, but purchases out of state and online do not. To use the card online or across the state line, choose "Unlock My Card" in the app or on the website. You can also call 1-800-997-8888: press 1, enter the card number, security code, expiration date and PIN, then press 2 for the Card Services menu and 7 to lock or unlock. "Lock My Card Everywhere" stops all use^10,11.

Federal replacement of skimmed SNAP covered thefts through December 20, 2024, and DHR cannot process affidavits for thefts on or after December 21, 2024. If you see charges you did not make, change your PIN, report it to your county DHR office and ask for a new card¹².

• Card customer service: 1-800-997-8888
• Cardholder website: ConnectEBT
• Cardholder app: ConnectEBT
• EBT processor: Conduent

Alabama SNAP and EBT phone numbers

Applying for food assistance in your Alabama county

1. Pick the right door for your county. If you live in Montgomery, Elmore, Tuscaloosa, Dallas or Talladega County, apply in the ACES portal⁴. Everywhere else, register for a MyDHR account and apply there. MyDHR sends the application to your county DHR office³.
2. Or file a paper application. Print form DHR-FSP-2116 (revised September 2026) from DHR's Food Assistance page, or pick one up at any county office¹. To file, you only need your name, address and signature. Mail, fax, email or bring it to the office in the county where you live¹⁵.
3. Choose phone or in-person interview. The paper application lets you mark a telephone or a face-to-face interview¹⁵. After you file, the county office gives or mails you an appointment¹⁶.
4. Gather proof before the interview. Bring an ID and proof of income, such as pay stubs, award letters or a child support statement. Bring bills for rent or mortgage, power, water, gas, property tax, home insurance, day care and child support paid. Medical bills count for elderly or disabled members. Expenses you don't prove are not deducted¹⁵.

If you are approved, benefits count from the day DHR receives your signed application¹⁵. The county has up to 30 days to decide¹⁶. DHR decides within 7 calendar days in three cases. One: monthly gross income is under $150 and cash and bank accounts total $100 or less¹⁵. Two: rent or mortgage plus utilities cost more than the household's monthly income and cash combined. Three: the household is a destitute migrant or seasonal farmworker household with less than $100 in cash².

You have to apply in the county where you live². If you disagree with a decision, you have 90 days to ask for a fair hearing. Ask your county office, or call the Food Assistance Division at 1-334-242-1700².

Alabama's FY2027 income chart and asset rules

Gross limit: as published by Alabama Department of Human Resources (DHR), Food Assistance Division². Net limit and maximum benefit: USDA FY2027 cost-of-living adjustments. All states compared.

DHR's chart for October 1, 2026 to September 30, 2027 is the federal 130% table: a household of 3 can have up to $2,960 a month gross and $2,277 net². Many states raise the gross limit through broad-based categorical eligibility; Alabama does so only for households in which every member is elderly or disabled, up to 200% of poverty, and they must still pass the net test¹⁷.

The September 2026 form also lists FY2027 maximum benefits, from $306 for one person to $1,023 for four, and the deductions: 20% of earnings, $217 standard for 1 to 3 people, and medical costs over $35 a month for elderly or disabled members². Getting LIHEAP qualifies a household for the heating and cooling allowance only if a member is 60 or older or disabled³¹. DHR's FY2027 utility allowance amounts were not in its published policy manual or eligibility form as of October 16, 2026.

Net income test. Households with no member 60 or older and no disabled member must pass both the 130% gross test and the 100% net test. Households with an elderly or disabled member face only the net test². Broad-based categorical eligibility does not lift the net test in Alabama: a household whose net income is over the limit is denied¹⁷.

Assets. Most households have no asset test, because broad-based categorical eligibility makes them exempt¹⁷. Households that are not exempt can have up to $3,000 in countable resources, or $4,750 if a member is elderly or disabled². Only liquid resources count, such as cash, bank accounts, stocks and bonds. Alabama does not count vehicles, buildings or land¹⁸.

Alabama's deposit days: the 4th through the 23rd

Ongoing SNAP benefits arrive between the 4th and the 23rd of each month, based on the last two digits of the case number.

Your deposit falls on the same date every month. This schedule has applied since September 2013⁷. A payment for this month or last month, such as a first payment after approval, is on the card the day after DHR enters it⁷. If you live in a drug or alcohol treatment center, half of the monthly benefit arrives on the 4th and the other half on the 16th⁷. DHR says the move to ACES does not change anyone's deposit date⁴.

Six-month reports and recertification in Alabama

Most households are certified for 12 months; ABAWDs (able-bodied adults without dependents) get 4 months and some noncitizen households 6¹⁹. DHR mails a six-month report in the fifth month. Return it, or file it in MyDHR, between the 1st and the 10th of the sixth month^19,3. Households with no earnings in which every adult is elderly or disabled skip the six-month report¹⁹.

Between reports you report only three things, by the 10th of the following month: income above 130% of poverty for your household size, an ABAWD's work dropping below 20 hours a week, or a lottery or gambling win of $4,750 or more^19,2. Before your period ends, DHR sends a notice of expiration. A renewal is on time if it arrives by the 15th of the last month. One filed within 30 days after the period ends is still treated as a renewal, with the first month prorated²⁰.

Rules specific to Alabama

Time limit for ages 18-64, with no waived areas in the first quarter of FY2027

DHR's September 2026 form applies the three-month time limit to adults 18 to 64 with no children and no disability. They need 80 hours a month of work, training or volunteering for more than 3 months of SNAP between January 2025 and December 2027, unless an exception applies, such as a child under 14 in the home or pregnancy². FNA's FY2027 first-quarter list shows no waived area in Alabama²⁴. A-RESET, DHR's voluntary training program, is meant to help people meet the work requirement. It runs in 46 counties²³ and pays $50 twice a month for program costs²².

Online grocery orders need an unlocked card

Alabama was one of the first eight states in USDA's SNAP online purchasing pilot and started in March 2020²⁷. Since January 22, 2026, every Alabama EBT card blocks online purchases by default. Unlock the card in ConnectEBT or at 1-800-997-8888 before you check out, then lock it again^10,11.

No soda or candy restriction, no Restaurant Meals Program

Alabama does not appear on FNA's list of approved SNAP food restriction waivers (updated October 13, 2026). That means the federal list of eligible foods still applies in Alabama, including soft drinks and candy²⁵. Alabama is also not on FNA's list of states that run a Restaurant Meals Program (updated August 7, 2026)²⁶.

Alabama SUN Bucks paid $120 per child for summer 2026

DHR and the State Department of Education paid $120 per school-age child for summer 2026, on a separate Alabama SUN Bucks card²⁸. Children in SNAP, TANF or certain Medicaid households, and children approved for free or reduced-price meals, were enrolled automatically. Students with free meals only through the Community Eligibility Provision had to apply²⁸. Applications closed August 15, 2026²⁹.

A shorter route for households where everyone is 65 or older

The Alabama Elderly Simplified Application Project (AESAP) serves households where everyone is 65 or older and no one has earnings. It uses a two-page form, a three-year certification and no interview unless you ask. You self-declare most facts, but must prove shelter, utility and medical costs and noncitizen status²¹.

Other assistance in Alabama

Sources

1. Food Assistance, Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
2. Food Assistance Program Summarized Eligibility Requirements, form DHR-FAP-1942 (09/26), limits effective 10/1/2026-9/30/2027, Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
3. MyDHR (food assistance online application and case access), Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
4. Alabama DHR Announces New Computer System for SNAP and TANF (October 1, 2026), Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
5. Food Assistance Division Contacts, Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
6. Electronic Benefit Transfer Contacts, Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
7. Alabama's EBT Issuance Schedule, Food Assistance (SNAP), Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
8. Alabama DHR Launches Chipped EBT Cards for SNAP & TANF Benefits (December 18, 2025), Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
9. Chipped EBT Cards Rolling Out Statewide (February 10, 2026), Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
10. SNAP Transactions for Out of State and Online Automatically Turned Off (January 12, 2026), Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
11. ConnectEBT Card Lock Instructions (with app, website and phone instruction PDFs), Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
12. EBT Fraud, Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
13. Alabama DHR Announces New Website and App for SNAP Clients (April 10, 2025), Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
14. Announcement: EBT-EFT Services contract with Conduent State and Local Solutions Inc., Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
15. Application for SNAP, form DHR-FAP-2116 with 1942 (Rev. 09-2026), Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
16. Food Assistance Division Frequently Asked Questions, Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
17. Food Assistance Policy Manual, Chapter 2: Application Processing (expanded categorical eligibility), Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
18. Food Assistance Policy Manual, Chapter 8: Resource Eligibility Standards, Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
19. Food Assistance Policy Manual, Chapter 17: Simplified Reporting Procedures, Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
20. Food Assistance Policy Manual, Chapter 14: Recertification, Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
21. Alabama's Elderly Simplified Application Project (AESAP) criteria (Rev. 06-26), Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
22. A-RESET, Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
23. A-RESET: Where We Are, Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
24. ABAWD Waiver Status, FY 2027 Quarter 1 (read via the agency CDN), USDA Food and Nutrition Administration. Checked 16 October 2026.
25. SNAP Food Restriction Waivers (page updated October 13, 2026; read via the agency CDN), USDA Food and Nutrition Administration. Checked 16 October 2026.
26. SNAP Restaurant Meals Program (page updated August 7, 2026; read via the agency CDN), USDA Food and Nutrition Administration. Checked 16 October 2026.
27. SNAP Online Purchasing (page updated February 17, 2026; read via the agency CDN), USDA Food and Nutrition Administration. Checked 16 October 2026.
28. Summer EBT Benefits Coming to Families with Eligible School Children (June 8, 2026), Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
29. Alabama SUN Bucks, Alabama Department of Human Resources and Alabama State Department of Education. Checked 16 October 2026.
30. OneAlabama (official DHR app for Family Assistance and JOBS), Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.
31. Food Assistance Policy Manual, Chapter 9: Income and Deductions (utility allowances), Alabama Department of Human Resources. Checked 16 October 2026.