Once the EBT card is received, and the PIN is received or selected, the card is ready for use. The card can be used any place the Quest® sign appears. The most common transaction is magnetic swipe.
The participant presses the EBT button on the POS machine. The card is “swiped” through the opening in the POS machine, then the PIN must be entered on the keypad. The amount of the purchase is deducted from the correct account and appears on the receipt. If the transaction is denied, the reason appears on the receipt.
Not all EBT transactions at a POS device are entered by the participant swiping the card through the machine. Sometimes circumstances cause the participant or store clerk to manually enter the transaction. This usually occurs when there is some defect or damage to the card which causes it to be rendered unusable. Some examples of this are:
Discuss with the participant when a convenient time is to cancel the card and reissue a new one. The damaged card cannot be used once it is canceled.
Until the agreed upon time when a damaged card is canceled, the participant may use the card at retailers. The retailer keys the card number in manually to complete the transaction, instead of using a manual voucher. This is done in the same manner as credit or debit cards that are entered manually. All POS devices are equipped to do manual transactions. The participant or the store clerk uses the keypad accompanying the POS machine to enter the necessary information. Only the participant should enter his/her PIN! It should never be revealed to store personnel as part of entering the manual transaction!
Discuss with the participant the importance of protecting the card and keeping it from being damaged to avoid this time-consuming process. Further information on this is contained in the IM-4EBTpamphlet.
The manual voucher process is established by FNS for retailers to use when the system or the terminals are not working and cannot accept the EBT card for a food stamp purchase. Retailers are not required to offer a manual voucher. However, most retailers do not want to turn away a participant and lose the sale. If staff is advised that a retailer refused to complete a manual voucher, please contact the Food Stamp Program and Policy Unit.
Manual vouchers are also used by retailers which do not qualify for POS terminals. These retailers always use manual vouchers for food stamp EBT sales. Some examples of these retailers are Schwan's route vendors and farmers' market vendors.
Manual vouchers are simply paper food stamp vouchers on which the retailer writes the card number, the cardholder's name, the store FCS/FNS number, and the dollar amount of the sale. The household member must sign the voucher.
Manual vouchers are only available for food stamp transactions. If a retailer's terminals are not working, the EBT card cannot be accepted for cash transactions.
Retailers must call in manual vouchers to eFunds to obtain an authorization for the amount. This guarantees that the money is available in the participant's account.
Manual vouchers are also used when the eFunds system is down. Since the retailer cannot confirm whether the participant has an available balance, eFunds will guarantee a food stamp purchase of $40.00 per cardholder per retailer in a 24 hour period. This happens only when eFunds notifies the state and the retailers that the eFunds system is down.
If a participant has a question about a manual voucher, refer the individual to the eFunds Help Desk number on the back of the card (1-800-997-7777).
The following establishments are prohibited from accepting TA EBT transactions:
The following items are prohibited to purchase using the TA EBT card: