Low-income families living in the state of Ohio can enjoy food stamp benefits using Ohio SNAP. The program provides adequate financial aid to individuals as well as families meeting income and other requirements for the program. The Office of Families and Children monitors the Food Stamps program in state of Ohio. The program literally helps thousands of families with food assistance. The program provides cash assistance each month, solely for buying food. With assistance for food, Ohio families can pay off their utilities and easily make their ends meet without having to worry about buying food.

To qualify for the program, residents of Ohio will have to meet various requirements, mainly focusing on household income and resources but also considering cooperation with child support and employment programs. If you meet the initial requirements, you will be provided a time and place for interview. The final decision as to your eligibility for food assistance will come after the interview.

The Food Stamps program in Ohio provides funds through an Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card. The EBT card looks and works just like a credit card. It is easy to find an approved store for buying food but beneficiaries will have to ensure that they are only using the card to buy permitted food items. The EBT card is easy to use, providing excellent security at the same time. Cardholders will enjoy faster payments with convenience.

The amount of assistance can fluctuate. Since it depends on your income, your benefits will change when your income changes. If your food stamp benefits change and you do not agree with the amount, you can appeal the decision. For households with no income and resources below $100, emergency SNAP benefits are available. After you apply for emergency SNAP, you will receive benefits within 24 hours of filing the application. If your income is under $150 with low resources, you can be entitled to receive SNAP benefits within 7 days of making an application.

You can apply for SNAP benefits online using a simple application. You can also apply on phone or visit local SNAP office to apply in person for the program.

Eligibility Requirements

You can easily determine your SNAP eligibility using pre-screening tool available at United States Department of Agriculture's Food and & Nutrition's Service (FNS) SNAP website: www.snap-step1.usda.gov. The pre-screening tool will helps you to determine your eligibility for the program before you actually apply for it. However, the online tool will not give a final verdict on your eligibility in any way. It provides a mere idea about your eligibility for the program.

In order to use the pre-screening tool, you will have to collect certain information such as your day care expenses, rent or mortgage that you are liable, utility bills, child support, financial resources and assets, and you earned income. You will have to provide this information during the online session while checking your eligibility using pre-screening tool.

In order to qualify for SNAP benefits in Ohio, you will have to meet different requirements, including financial requirements.

• Resources/assets eligibility: Your household resources should be below $2,000 including bank accounts, real estate, and other valuable assets. If a person of 60 years of age or above is living in the household, then the household with resources up to $3250 can qualify for the program.
  
• Income eligibility: Majority of households will have to meet gross as well as net income requirements in order to receive SNAP benefits. However, household with all members receiving TANF, SSI etc income support, will automatically qualify the income requirements. A household with an elderly person who receives disability payments does not have to meet gross income guidelines. It will only need to meet net income requirements to receive SNAP benefits. You will also be allowed certain deductions such as 20% standard deduction on earned income, dependent care deduction, payments received for child support, certain deductions for homeless households, and any other deductions that FNS decides to allow. To calculate your net income, you can subtract all the allowable deductions from gross income. To compare your income to gross monthly income limit or net monthly income limit for SNAP program, you can check out the chart at FNS website Here.
  
• Citizenship and immigration eligibility: To receive SNAP benefits in the state of Ohio, you will have to be a U.S citizen or a legal immigrant. You must have lived in the country for five years or you are receiving disability assistance. In the later case, the entry date will not be considered for determining your alien status. Similarly, children will not have to pass five-year residence rule. For more information on immigration rules, you can read SNAP Guidance on Non-Citizen Eligibility Here
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• Elderly or disable: For elderly or disabled, some special SNAP rules apply to households with such persons. These special rules amend resources and income limits for such households in addition to providing a few additional allowable deductions. Households with such persons can call SNAP hotline to learn about benefits and eligibility for it. Click Here for the elderly or disabled hotline contact information.

Food Stamps Application Instructions

You can apply for SNAP Food Stamp benefits online as well as through SNAP hotline. You can also apply in person. Here is how to apply:

Online Application

To apply online for SNAP benefits, you can go to this Link. The online application is simple and easy. You will have to provide information such as household income, amount of assets and resources, child support income etc. Make sure that you have all such information available when you apply online.

Walk-In/In Person Application

To apply in person for the program, you will have to visit your local SNAP office. You can find directions for your local SNAP Food Stamp office Here. Once on this page, click on Ohio (OH) and you wil see an up to date list of locations.

Apply by Phone

You can also apply on phone for SNAP benefits in state of Ohio. To apply, you can call SNAP hotline number 1-866-244-0071.