3805 Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) | SNAP

EBT accounts are established upon authorization of the case in the Gateway system or the EBT Unit can setup an account online in EBTAS. An EBT card will be sent to the applicant/recipient (A/R). A card mailer, tips card and handbook to explain how to use the card will accompany this card. EBT cards will not be created for subsequent cases on the same client ID. EBT cards have sixteen digits. The first six digits on the EBT card are 5081 48 and are the Georgia identifier.

The phone number for Conduent Customer Service is on the back of the card and in the card mailer. The Service Provider’s customer service phone number is 1-888-421-3281. Customers can also access Customer Service and view account information through the online portal by logging onto: www.connectebt.com/gaebtclient/.

Once an EBT account is set up the EBT card is produced and mailed. Upon receipt of the initial EBT card, the A/R must call Customer Service (1-888-421-3281) to activate their initial card and select a PIN.

The Head of Household (HOH) will receive one EBT card to access all SNAP benefits for the entire household. The Client ID in the Gateway system and EBT equals the case number on EPPIC AT.

Requests for replacement EBT cards due to loss, theft or damage may be completed by calling Conduent Customer Service, through the online portal or by having the county worker request a replacement card through the State Office EBT Team at EBT@dhs.ga.gov. Replacement cards are mailed in active status; the existing PIN will transfer to the new card.

An A/R may change their PIN by making a call to Customer Service or through the EBT online portal. The A/R will select the PIN of their choice and the new PIN will be updated effective immediately.

If the customer makes four (4) incorrect PIN attempts, the EBT account will be locked until midnight of the day the fourth attempt is made.

SNAP EBT benefits can be accessed through point of sale (POS) devices at retailers who carry the QUEST logo.

EBT accounts are set up when an initial case is processed in the Gateway system and/or if the A/R has never had a GA EBT account.

Assigning additional EDG numbers and/or Clients IDs in the Gateway system creates new account numbers which are then displayed in EBTAS. The most current account number in EBTAS is the one that should be used for data entry transactions. The EBT Service Provider defaults to the original account number.

EBT accounts not debited for six months (180 days) may have stale unused benefits that can be used to repay any outstanding claims.

Expungement is the removal of a benefits from an EBT account. This process occurs when there has been no credit or debit activity initiated by the client. Once benefits are expunged, they can no longer be accessed by the household. After 9 months of inactivity, benefits are expunged from the account one month at a time, first in first out as each month ages to 274 days. Any client-initiated debit or credit will stop the expungement process and the 274-day clock resets to zero.

EBT cards may be received at county DFCS offices for different reasons. For example, a lost card may be found in the community; A/R may return their card as they are no longer interested in participating in the program; A/R may not have a home address therefore their mail is delivered to DFCS, or A/R may have difficulty receiving their mail at their home address therefore their mail is delivered to DFCS. EBT cards received at the DFCS office must be accounted for and secured properly.

EBT cards, which have been mailed to the DFCS office, will be retained for at least 60 days. If the A/R has not picked up the card at the end of 60 days, the card should be destroyed. The destruction of EBT cards requires a witness.

EBT cards returned to the office (found, unwanted, etc.) must be logged in and then can be destroyed immediately upon receipt.

When EBT cards are maintained at the county office for an agency representative to handle an A/R’s financial dealings, they must complete an EBT Form 4 - Control Log – Receipt of Card/PIN - Benefit Representative/Guardian and it must be maintained to document the receipt of these EBT cards.

It is necessary for agency employees to complete EBT transactions for A/Rs from time to time as a part of their job. To insure the safety of A/R’s accounts and to protect workers, the following procedures must be followed:

Benefits can be manually issued to an EBT account when one of the following occurs:

The county will send the request for manual issuance to the Food and Nutrition Unit within the OFI Section at the State Office via EBT Form 9 - Request for Manual Issuance of Benefits for approval. The EBT Unit will process the manual issuance and email confirmation back to the county. The case should be brought to final in the Gateway system for the ongoing month at the time the manual issuance request is submitted, if appropriate. The amount and months of the manual issuance(s) will be entered in the Gateway system by the SNAP Field Program Specialist in the Quality Section or the SNAP Policy Specialist in the Food and Nutrition Unit at the State Office.

When appropriate for policy reasons, pending SNAP benefits may be voided in EBTAS from the time the benefit information is sent to EBT through the day prior to being posted in the A/R’s EBT account. Only full month’s benefit amounts are voided. Benefits waiting to be posted to an A/R’s EBT account can be viewed on EPPIC on the Receipt Benefit Management screen.

Only pending ongoing monthly benefits can be voided. Initial benefits, restorations, correctives and/or supplementals cannot be voided.

Benefits can be re-obligated from one EBT account to another in the case of death or an extreme emergency. The accounts must have different client ids and different case numbers. The benefits being re-obligated must be re-obligated to an account of the same type-FS to FS. The county will send the request for re-obligation to the Food and Nutrition Unit, SNAP Policy Team within the OFI Section at the State Office via EBT Form 10 - Request for Re-obligation of Benefits for approval. The EBT Unit Section will process the re-obligation and send confirmation back to the county.

EBT accounts are sometimes erroneously debited preventing an AU from access to the benefits for which it is eligible due to a system error. When this happens the A/R must call Customer Service and file a claim. The A/R must provide the card number, the date the error occurred, the dollar amount of the erroneous debit, and the location where the error occurred. Erroneous debit claims must be resolved within 10 business days.

The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 includes provisions for the replacement of certain benefits stolen through skimming, cloning or other fraudulent methods October 1, 2022, through September 30, 2024, with federal funds. The Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act of 2025 extended this authority to December 20, 2024.

Unlike erroneous debits attributed to system errors, EBT benefits are sometimes stolen due to skimming, cloning or other fraudulent methods. Skimming involves the use of electronic equipment to capture a recipient’s EBT card information without the recipient’s knowledge. Criminals can use the data captured by skimming or other means to create fake EBT cards (card cloning) and then use those to steal from households' accounts. Other similar fraudulent methods of obtaining EBT card data may include, but are not limited to, scamming through fraudulent phone calls or text messaging that mimic official state agency messaging and phishing.

If a SNAP recipient believes that their SNAP benefits have been stolen or skimmed, the recipient must contact the agency via in email, in person or by phone, to request and complete an affidavit to begin the validation process.

All requests for replacement benefits are reviewed by the Office of Inspector General (OIG) prior to approval.

In the situation of an EBT system problem, which causes an account to be debited or credited incorrectly, a retailer may request the account be corrected. A/R will be sent a FS EBT Adjustment Notice from the Service Provider which explains:

Questions and hearing requests regarding these situations will be directed to the Personal Advocates at the State Office.

The hearing will be conducted with an EBT State Office Unit staff member testifying for the agency.

If a hearing request is received, the EBT unit will update EPPIC accordingly.