Summer EBT/SUN Bucks

Summer is a time when many children may not have access to the free and reduced-price meals they get during the school year, and households might need a little extra help putting meals on the table.

SUN Bucks, Pennsylvania’s Summer EBT program, is a new grocery benefits program that provides households with a one-time payment of $120 for each eligible child to buy food while school is out. Benefits can be used at local participating retailers to purchase groceries.

Many children will get these benefits automatically, but some households will need to apply. The benefits will be added to an existing SNAP/TANF EBT card or a newly issued Summer EBT card.  

Note: Benefits for Summer of 2025 will begin being issued to all eligible children in mid-August.

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Eligibility

Children who applied and were approved for free/reduced-price school meals or who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance (SNAP), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits are automatically eligible for SUN Bucks. 

Most children who get Medicaid are also automatically eligible for SUN Bucks because their income level is under the income level for the National School Lunch or School Breakfast Program. Children who get Medicaid through the Children with Special Needs category (PH 95) and children who are in the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) will have to apply for SUN Bucks. 

Children are automatically eligible for the SUN Bucks Summer EBT program and do not need to apply to receive a benefit if:

• The household received SNAP or TANF between July 1, 2024 and August 31, 2025 and the child is enrolled in a school that participates in the National School Lunch or School Breakfast Program; OR
• The household received SNAP or TANF between July 1, 2024 and August 31, 2025  and the child is not enrolled in a school that participates in the National School Lunch or School Breakfast Program but was between ages 6-18 between July 1, 2024 and August 31, 2025; OR
• The child received Medicaid with qualifying income for the National School Lunch or School Breakfast Program between July 1, 2024 and August 31, 2025 and the child is enrolled in a school that participates in the National School Lunch or School Breakfast Program; OR
• The child received Medicaid with qualifying income for the National School Lunch or School Breakfast Program between July 1, 2024 and August 31, 2025 and the child is not enrolled in a school that participates in the National School Lunch or School Breakfast Program but is between ages 6-18 between July 1, 2024 and August 31, 2025; OR
• The child is in Head Start, is homeless, in foster care, or is a runaway and the child is enrolled in a school that participates in the National School Lunch or School Breakfast Program; OR
• The child applied for and was determined eligible for free or reduced-priced meals through the National School Lunch or Breakfast Program.

Note: DHS asks families not to call the County Assistance Offices or Statewide Customer Service lines regarding not receiving Summer EBT/SUN Bucks before the end of August 2025, when almost all the Summer EBT/SUN Bucks benefits for automatically eligible children have been issued.

SNAP, TANF, and Medical Assistance households that need to update their address with DHS should do so as soon as possible.