Nebraska EBT and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

Applying and managing your case in iServe Nebraska

iServe Nebraska is the DHHS portal that is replacing the older ACCESSNebraska site. Use it to apply, to see your letters and alerts, to check submitted applications and renewals, and to file an online change report^27,2. The "Apply Today" button on the DHHS SNAP page, the Medicaid page and the LIHEAP page all lead to it^1,26,25.

If you cannot use the portal, Economic Assistance Customer Service takes calls on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.: 1-800-383-4278 toll-free, 1-402-323-3900 in Lincoln, 1-402-595-1258 in Omaha. Paper forms and documents go by fax to 1-402-742-2351 or by mail to the DHHS Document Imaging Center, P.O. Box 2992, Omaha, NE 68103-2992³. DHHS still uses the older ACCESSNebraska name for this service unit and its email box, [email protected]³. The same iServe application covers Aid to Dependent Children, Nebraska's cash aid for families²⁴.

iServe Nebraska

The Nebraska EBT card and ebtEDGE

The card shows the Sower statue from the top of the State Capitol against a blue sky. It arrives by mail after approval and works in all 50 states, D.C., Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands⁷. Check the balance on your last receipt, at 1-877-247-6328 (247-NEBT), or in ebtEDGE, the website and app run by FIS^9,8. FIS updated ebtEDGE in June 2026. The app now has a new logo, multi-factor sign-in, fingerprint or face login and a remote card freeze. An older login still works if you used it within the last 3 months⁸.

If the card is lost, stolen or damaged, call 1-877-247-6328 or use "Cancel Card" in ebtEDGE. This cancels the old card and orders a new one, and it does not touch your case or benefits^9,8. Replacement cards are free and usually arrive in 3 to 5 mail days with the same PIN. Three wrong PIN tries lock the card until the next day⁹.

DHHS states that Nebraska SNAP cards do not have a chip¹⁰. To guard against skimming, it suggests changing your PIN at the end of each month before the next deposit, freezing the card in ebtEDGE between uses, and turning on alerts. Report a skimmer to the Special Investigations Unit at 1-402-595-3789¹⁰. The EBT page announces that out-of-state blocking will be added to cards, with no start date given⁷. Nebraska's pages offer no replacement for skimmed benefits. Since federal replacement ended on December 20, 2024, DHHS replaces SNAP only for food destroyed by a household misfortune such as a fire, flood or power outage. You must report it within 10 days^11,9.

• Card customer service: 1-877-247-6328
• Cardholder website: ebtEDGE
• Cardholder app: ebtEDGE (iPhone, Android)
• EBT processor: FIS

Nebraska SNAP and EBT phone numbers

How to apply for SNAP in Nebraska

1. Apply in iServe Nebraska, by phone or on paper. Apply in iServe Nebraska, or call 1-800-383-4278^2,3. Paper applications can be faxed to 1-402-742-2351 or mailed to the Document Imaging Center in Omaha³. An application counts as filed once it has your name, address and a signature¹².
2. Do the interview. An interview is required for a new application. DHHS holds it by phone or in person, and you can ask for a face-to-face interview¹². If you miss it, DHHS sends a letter. You must call the local office within 30 days of your filing date to get a second interview¹².
3. Send the proof DHHS asks for. Rule changes announced in May 2026 added proof requirements for who lives in the household, U.S. citizenship, work-rule exemptions, shelter costs and utility costs¹. Fax or mail the documents with your case details³.
4. Get your card and PIN. When you are approved, the Nebraska EBT card comes by mail⁷. Set the PIN by calling 1-877-247-6328 or in ebtEDGE^9,8.

DHHS must give eligible households benefits within 30 days of filing. Households with almost no money qualify for expedited service: they get benefits, and the EBT card, by the seventh calendar day after filing. Only identity must be proven for that first issuance. Other papers can wait until before the second issuance¹².

Since 2025 the federal rules have narrowed who can get SNAP. Nebraska applied the 2025 federal law to new applications from October 20, 2025. Refugees and people granted asylum are no longer eligible, and LIHEAP rules now follow the same citizenship limits^13,14. State law keeps a partial drug-felony ban. Three or more possession felonies, or any felony for selling drugs, disqualify a person. One or two possession felonies are allowed if the person is in or has finished licensed treatment⁶.

Nebraska's 165% income chart for FY2027

Gross limit: as published by Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)⁴. Net limit and maximum benefit: USDA FY2027 cost-of-living adjustments. All states compared.

Nebraska's broad eligibility option is called the Expanded Resource Program (ERP). State law sets it at 165% of the poverty line⁶. You do not apply for it separately. Signing the SNAP application makes a household ERP-eligible unless someone in it is disqualified for a work-rule violation, an intentional program violation or benefit trafficking¹². The DHHS chart for October 1, 2026 matches 165% of the 2026 federal poverty guidelines, starting at $2,195 a month for one person⁴.

After approval, ERP households have one main income duty. Report when gross income goes above 130% of poverty. After that, you do not report raises until your next renewal⁴. The same DHHS chart lists FY2027 deductions. These are a $217 standard deduction for 1 to 3 people, a $637 standard utility allowance, $332 limited utility allowance and $65 one-utility allowance. The telephone allowance is $56, and the shelter deduction is capped at $769⁵. Since the 2025 federal law, a LIHEAP payment gives a household the full utility allowance only if the household has an elderly or disabled member¹³.

Net income test. Households in the Expanded Resource Program meet only the 165% gross standard in the chart above; DHHS rules say categorically eligible households need to pass neither the gross nor the net test^12,4. Households outside the program must pass the net test ($1,330 a month for one person from October 1, 2026). Those with a member who is 60 or older or disabled skip the gross test, and all others must also pass the 130% gross limit ($1,729 for one person)^12,4.

Assets. Expanded Resource Program households may have up to $25,000 in cash, checking, savings, money market and share accounts. Cars, homes and other non-liquid assets do not count at all^6,12. Other households face the federal limits from October 1, 2026: $3,000, or $4,750 with an elderly or disabled member⁴.

Deposit days: the 1st through the 5th

Between the 1st and 5th of each month, set by the last digit of the head of household's Social Security number, available by 8 a.m. Central Time.

This schedule comes from the DHHS EBT questions and answers sheet, last updated May 2022 and still linked from the DHHS EBT page^9,7. Unused SNAP stays on the card. However, if the card goes unused for 90 days, DHHS may take benefits to repay an unpaid SNAP overpayment owed by an adult in the household. Benefits left unspent for 274 days are removed for good⁹. Summer EBT money follows a shorter clock: 122 days from the day after it is issued¹⁹.

Six- and twelve-month renewals

DHHS gives households a 6-month or a 12-month certification period. If you are on 6 months, you need an interview only once in each 12-month span. If you are on 12 months, you may be able to renew without an interview unless DHHS has questions or you ask for one¹². Renew before your period ends and your benefits continue without a gap. If you file within 30 days after it ends, it still counts as a renewal, but you need an interview and the first month is prorated from your filing date¹². Changes from the 2025 federal law, including the new work rules, were applied to existing cases at their next semi-annual renewal¹⁴.

Report changes with an online change report in iServe or through Economic Assistance Customer Service at 1-800-383-4278^2,3. Report a new address to your worker so notices and a new card reach you. The U.S. Postal Service must also have your address on file for the card to be mailed^9,7.

Rules specific to Nebraska

Soda and energy drink ban: started, struck down, re-requested

USDA approved Nebraska's Healthy Choice Waiver on May 19, 2025. From January 1, 2026, Nebraska stores stopped taking SNAP for soda and energy drinks^16,15. The ban also applied to Summer EBT 2026¹⁹. On June 22, 2026 the U.S. District Court for D.C. vacated the approval. DHHS is working with stores to lift the block, and some will need time to update their registers^1,15. Sports drinks such as Gatorade, milk drinks, infant formula and plain coffee or tea were never covered¹⁵. Nebraska filed a new request on September 1, 2026: no soda, soft drinks or energy drinks from December 1, 2026, and no candy from March 1, 2027. USDA had not decided it as of October 16, 2026¹⁷.

Work rules: ages 18-64, and no waivers by state law

From October 20, 2025, adults aged 18 to 64 without a child 13 or younger must work, train or volunteer 20 hours a week (80 a month) to keep SNAP past the federal time limit. Veterans, homeless people and young adults who aged out of foster care lost their exemption. People eligible for Indian Health Service care gained one^13,14. A 2025 state law, LB192, bars DHHS from seeking or renewing a waiver of the time limit unless federal law requires it⁶. DHHS's SNAP Next Step program offers job search help, training and tuition in some service areas, together with the Department of Labor²³.

Summer EBT 2026: $120 per child

Nebraska paid a one-time $120 for each eligible school-age child, starting May 28, 2026¹⁹. It continued with weekly issuances until September 10, 2026²⁰. Children in SNAP, ADC, FDPIR or income-based Medicaid households were enrolled automatically. Other families had to apply by August 12, 2026^19,18. Cards must be activated, and the benefits expire 122 days after they are issued. For questions call 1-800-383-4278, option 5¹⁹.

Online grocery orders since 2020; no restaurant meals

Nebraska was one of the eight states in USDA's original online purchasing pilot. SNAP online buying started here on April 1, 2020²¹. Nebraska does not run the Restaurant Meals Program, so SNAP cannot buy hot restaurant meals here even for older, disabled or homeless people²².

Other assistance in Nebraska

Sources

1. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
2. iServe Nebraska portal, Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
3. ACCESSNebraska contact information (Economic Assistance Customer Service), Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
4. SNAP Program Standards effective October 1, 2026 (guidance document), Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
5. SNAP Monthly Deductions effective October 1, 2026 (guidance document), Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
6. Neb. Rev. Stat. 68-1017.02 (SNAP options, categorical eligibility, work requirement waivers), Nebraska Legislature. Checked 16 October 2026.
7. Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT), Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
8. ebtEDGE, Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
9. Nebraska EBT Questions & Answers for Clients (updated May 2022), Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
10. EBT Card Skimming, Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
11. Request Replacement Benefits for SNAP and SEBT, Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
12. Title 475 NAC Chapters 2 and 3, hearing draft (Household Processing; Eligibility), 2026, Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
13. One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) Important SNAP Updates, Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
14. OBBB SNAP Changes: Frequently Asked Questions (updated August 17, 2026), Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
15. SNAP Healthy Choice Waiver, Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
16. SNAP Healthy Choice Waiver Authorized Retailer Information, Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
17. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: State of Nebraska SNAP Demonstration Project (notice 2026-20211, October 2, 2026), Federal Register. Checked 16 October 2026.
18. Nebraska Summer EBT 2026, Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
19. First Issuance of Summer EBT Benefits Going Out to Families (news release, May 28, 2026), Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
20. DHHS Continues Summer EBT Issuances to Eligible Families (news release, July 16, 2026), Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
21. SNAP Online Purchasing Pilot (page updated February 17, 2026), USDA Food and Nutrition Administration. Checked 16 October 2026.
22. SNAP Restaurant Meals Program (page updated August 7, 2026), USDA Food and Nutrition Administration. Checked 16 October 2026.
23. SNAP Next Step and Employment & Training (E&T), Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
24. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (ADC/EF), Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
25. Low Income Home Energy Assistance (LIHEAP), Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
26. Medicaid Eligibility, Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.
27. ACCESSNebraska and iServe Nebraska, Nebraska DHHS. Checked 16 October 2026.