Attention: California and Oklahoma SNAP EBT Retailers

SNAP EBT Chip and Tap Cards are Coming Soon

These cards:

• Will not work at retailer point-of-sale (POS) without the appropriate updates.
• Will have a magnetic stripe as a fallback, but retailers must ensure that their POS system will allow SNAP EBT chip cards to “fallback” to magnetic stripe until SNAP EBT chip cards are fully supported on their POS device(s)/system. This is referred to as Empty Candidate List (ECL) fallback.

About SNAP EBT Chip Card Payment

• Be ready to accept SNAP EBT chip card payments to ensure SNAP clients can use their benefits at your store.
• Though strongly encouraged, you are not required to accept EBT tap payment at this time.
• Chip and tap transactions still require cardholder PIN entry at the point-of-sale.

Steps You Should Take Immediately

1. Contact Your Point-of-Sale (POS) service provider TODAY to ensure that your POS system will allow SNAP EBT chip cards to “fallback” to magnetic stripe transactions. More details for your POS provider are available.
2. Ask your POS service provider to update your POS to fully support SNAP EBT chip cards.
3. Tell your POS provider that the SNAP EBT chip cards will use:
   • Standard EMV chips
   • Both contact-only and dual-interface
   • New EBT Application Identifier (AID): A0000000044542
   • 220 service code on Track II of the magstripe
   • If your POS service provider needs more information about supporting SNAP EBT chip cards, tell them to contact their Third-Party Processor (TPP)

Steps You Should Take After Confirming or Enabling ECL Fallback on Your POS Device/System

• FNS is requesting retailers report successful ECL fallback at the SNAP EBT Modernization Technical Assistance Center (SEMTAC) website

Steps You Should Take After your POS device/system Is Updated to Fully Accept SNAP EBT Chip Cards

• FNS is requesting retailers report their ability to fully accept chip enabled EBT cards at the SNAP EBT Modernization Technical Assistance Center (SEMTAC) website

Note on Reporting:
The intent of collecting this information is so that FNS can determine that SNAP households have access to their benefits once chip cards are distributed. While the information may be shared with states that are working toward implementation, individual retailer information will not be publicly distributed or displayed in any way.

Resources

For more information, please visit:

• SNAP EBT Modernization Technical Assistance Center (SEMTAC) FAQ
• SNAP EBT Chip Card Technical Resources
• SNAP EBT Modernization

Join the USDA EBT Card Industry Forum and have a voice in the future of EBT modernization!

• This industry forum allows groups associated with the USDA’s issuance, processing and redemption of SNAP benefits to discuss issues around upgrading SNAP EBT cards to chip card, as well as the associated updates around mobile NFC payments, SNAP Online Purchasing and SNAP Electronic Healthy Food Incentive Program (eHIP).
• Members includes USDA, state agencies, retailers, card processors, and others.
• If you are interested in participating, submit a request.