Ohio residents who qualify for Supplemental Nutrition Assistant Program (SNAP) benefits receive their payments according to the same schedule every month, based on the last digit of their case number. That will also be the case in January. Payments begin on the 2nd of the month and continue through the 20th and will include the 12.5% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) approved for 2023.

                By                    Josephine Nesbit

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SNAP, formerly known as food stamps, is a federal program that provides food-purchasing assistance to low-income households. Although it is part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the program is administered at the state level. Ohio’s SNAP program is administered by the state’s Department of Jobs and Family Services (DJFS). 

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Eligibility for food assistance in Ohio depends on household size and income. You can apply for SNAP benefits online at Benefits.Ohio.gov or submit an application to your county Department of Job and Family Services office. You can also file a SNAP application through your local Ohio Benefit Bank website.

Once approved for SNAP, benefits are deposited monthly into SNAP accounts linked to your Ohio Direction Card, its version of Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) cards. 

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Benefits are deposited onto Ohio Direction Cards between the 2nd and the 20th of every month, based on the last digit of your case number. Here’s the deposit schedule for January 2023:

Cards can be used anywhere you see the Ohio Direction Card sticker, including most grocery stores and certain other retailers. You can also use your SNAP EBT at participating farmers’ markets to purchase fresh produce. The USDA’s Food Nutrition Service (FNS) provides a monthly list of the names and locations of markets across the country that are currently authorized to accept SNAP benefits.

SNAP recipients can use their Direction Cards to purchase these food items:

  • Fruits and vegetablesMeat, poultry and fishDairy productsBreads and cerealsSnack foods and non-alcoholic beveragesSeeds and plants, which produce food for the household to eat

Among the items you can’t buy with SNAP benefits are alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, vitamins, medicines, supplements, live animals, pet foods, cleaning supplies, paper products and cosmetics. In Ohio, you also can’t use SNAP to purchase hot meals.

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