Virginia's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is run by the Virginia Department of Social Services and pays out on an EBT card that works at the register like a debit card. For federal fiscal year 2027, which runs October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027, the maximum monthly benefit runs from $306 for one person to $1,023 for a household of four and $1,841 for eight. Most households get less than the maximum, because the amount is calculated from income and allowable expenses rather than assigned by household size alone. This guide covers what happens after approval: how much Virginia issues, how VDSS works out your figure, what the card buys and what it does not, and the three Virginia programs that stretch the benefit further. One rule changes soon: starting November 1, 2026, Virginia SNAP will no longer pay for soda, including diet and zero-sugar soda.
If you are still confirming whether you qualify, start with our Virginia SNAP eligibility guide. If you need to know what day your money lands, see the Virginia EBT deposit schedule. You can also browse every program Virginia runs on our Virginia benefits page.
Virginia SNAP Maximum Monthly Benefit Amounts, FY2027
These are the US Department of Agriculture maximum allotments for the 48 contiguous states and DC, in effect from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027. Virginia uses this table without adjustment.
| Household Size | Maximum Monthly Benefit (FY2027) |
|---|
| 1 | $306 |
| 2 | $562 |
| 3 | $808 |
| 4 | $1,023 |
| 5 | $1,217 |
| 6 | $1,463 |
| 7 | $1,616 |
| 8 | $1,841 |
| Each additional person | +$225 |
A household's actual benefit is the maximum allotment for its size minus 30% of its net monthly income. A household with no countable income after deductions receives the full maximum. As net income rises, the benefit falls, and at a high enough net income the calculated amount reaches zero.
One-person and two-person households that qualify receive at least $25 a month, the federal minimum benefit, even when the formula produces less. That floor does not extend to households of three or more. A larger household whose calculation comes out at zero simply receives nothing that month.
How VDSS Calculates Your Monthly Amount
The calculation starts at gross monthly income and subtracts a set of federal deductions to reach net income. The FY2027 deductions are:
| Deduction | FY2027 Amount |
|---|
| Standard deduction, households of 1 to 3 | $217 |
| Standard deduction, household of 4 | $229 |
| Standard deduction, household of 5 | $268 |
| Standard deduction, household of 6 or more | $308 |
| Earned income deduction | 20% of gross earned income |
| Excess shelter deduction cap, no elderly or disabled member | $769 |
| Medical expense deduction, elderly or disabled members | Only costs above $35 a month count |
| Dependent care needed for work, training, or school | Actual cost, no cap |
The excess shelter deduction applies only when rent or mortgage plus utilities exceeds half of the household's income after the other deductions. The $769 ceiling does not apply to a household that includes a member who is 60 or older or has a disability. Those households deduct shelter costs above the halfway point with no cap at all, which is why a senior with high rent and high medical bills often qualifies for far more than a quick online estimate suggests.
One change worth knowing: internet service costs stopped counting toward the shelter and utility deduction on July 4, 2025. If you were approved before that date and your figure dropped at recertification, this is a common reason.
A worked example. A Virginia household of three with $1,900 in monthly earned income and $1,000 a month in rent and utilities subtracts the 20% earned income deduction of $380 and the $217 standard deduction, leaving adjusted income of about $1,303. Half of that is roughly $652, so shelter costs above that point come to about $348 in excess shelter deduction, which is under the $769 cap. Net income lands near $955. Thirty percent of $955 is about $287, so the benefit is $808 minus $287, or roughly $521 a month.
Virginia uses broad-based categorical eligibility, so a household under the state's 200% of poverty gross income limit is categorically eligible and does not have to pass a separate net income test to qualify. The benefit amount is still computed from net income the same way. BBCE also means most Virginia households face no asset test. Savings, a car, and a bank balance are not counted or verified for the large majority of applicants. The federal resource limits, $3,000 generally and $4,750 for a household with an elderly or disabled member, apply only in the narrow situations where categorical eligibility does not.
What the Virginia EBT Card Buys
SNAP covers food for the household to prepare and eat at home. In Virginia that means:
| Allowed | Not Allowed |
|---|
| Fruits, vegetables, meat, poultry, fish | Alcohol and tobacco |
| Dairy, bread, cereal, and other grains | Hot prepared food from a deli counter |
| Snack foods, juice, milk, and most other non-alcoholic drinks | Vitamins, supplements, and medicine |
| Baby formula and baby food | Pet food |
| Seeds and plants that produce food | Paper goods, soap, cleaning supplies |
| Spices, herbs, diabetic and diet foods | Diapers, toiletries, cosmetics |
| Unsweetened seltzer and non-carbonated energy drinks | Soda, diet soda, zero-sugar soda, and carbonated energy drinks, starting November 1, 2026 |
Two rules trip people up. First, anything sold hot at the point of sale is not SNAP eligible, so a rotisserie chicken under a heat lamp is out while the same chicken sold cold is in. Second, anything with a Supplement Facts label rather than a Nutrition Facts label is treated as a supplement and is not covered.
Your balance carries over month to month. Virginia does not reset it. Under federal rules, however, benefits left unused for 274 days can be removed from the account, a process called expungement, so do not let a balance sit for months.
Virginia began mailing chip EBT cards in September 2026, and VDSS says every customer will have one by December 31, 2026. You can lock and unlock your card yourself through ConnectEBT at connectebt.com or the ConnectEBT app. Locking the card between shopping trips is the single most effective thing you can do against skimming, because a cloned card cannot be used while the real one is locked.
Virginia's Soda Rule Starting November 1, 2026
Starting November 1, 2026, Virginia SNAP will no longer pay for carbonated sweetened drinks. VDSS lists soda, diet soda, "zero" or zero-sugar soda, carbonated energy drinks, and carbonated drinks with 5 grams or more of added sugar per serving. The rule reaches any drink made with carbonated water and flavored or sweetened with added sugar or an artificial sweetener.
Other drinks stay eligible, including milk and milk alternatives, juice, sports drinks, iced tea, iced coffee, lemonade, unsweetened seltzer, non-carbonated energy drinks, kombucha, yogurt drinks, infant formula, and meal replacement shakes. The change comes from a USDA waiver approved in December 2025, and it does not change who qualifies or how much you receive. A restricted drink can still be bought with another form of payment. A June 2026 federal court ruling that stopped similar rules in five other states did not cover Virginia. Questions go to SNAPHealthy@dss.virginia.gov.
Online Grocery Orders
Virginia SNAP households can pay with EBT online. Amazon, Walmart, Target, Food Lion, Safeway, and ALDI all accept EBT for pickup and delivery in Virginia markets where they operate, and the list grows as retailers get USDA authorization. SNAP pays only for eligible food. Delivery fees, service fees, tips, and bag charges cannot come out of the EBT balance, so you need a second payment method on file for those. Some retailers discount their delivery memberships for EBT customers, which is worth checking before you place an order.
Virginia Restaurant Meals Program
Virginia is one of a small number of states that run a Restaurant Meals Program. Under the Virginia Restaurant Meals Program, or VRMP, a SNAP household can buy prepared hot meals at participating restaurants with the EBT card if every member falls into a qualifying category: age 60 or older, living with a disability, experiencing homelessness, or the spouse of someone who qualifies.
VRMP is not open to the general SNAP caseload, and participating restaurants are a limited set rather than every restaurant that wants in. Most are familiar chains. Look for the VRMP logo at the door and use the restaurant locator on the VDSS website to find locations near you. If you believe your household qualifies and your card is being declined at a VRMP restaurant, VDSS says to call EBT Customer Service at 866-281-2448 or contact your SNAP eligibility worker.
Virginia Fresh Match
Virginia Fresh Match is the state's produce incentive program and is the best value available to a Virginia SNAP household. At participating farmers markets, it matches SNAP dollars spent on fruits and vegetables one for one, so $10 of benefits buys $20 of produce. At participating grocery stores, farm stands, and mobile markets, the structure is a 50% discount on eligible produce bought with SNAP instead of a token match.
The network covers more than 150 sites statewide. SUN Bucks benefits qualify alongside SNAP. Federal funding cuts in early 2025 put the program's money at risk. In September 2026 it received $1 million in state funding in Virginia's fiscal 2027 budget, and it is still operating. Because funding and participating sites shift, check the Virginia Fresh Match site locator before you drive to a market, and ask at the market booth how to activate the match rather than assuming it applies automatically at the register.
SUN Bucks, Virginia's Summer EBT Program
Virginia participates in Summer EBT, which it calls SUN Bucks. For summer 2026, each eligible school-age child received a one-time $120 grocery benefit, with issuance beginning June 29, 2026 and the application window closing August 31, 2026.
About 85% of eligible children were enrolled automatically with no application, including children already on SNAP, TANF, or income-based Medicaid, and children approved for free or reduced-price school meals during the 2025 to 2026 school year. Families already on SNAP received the money on their existing EBT card. Everyone else received a separate Virginia SUN Bucks card in the mail. The funds expire roughly four months after issuance and work anywhere SNAP is accepted, including at Virginia Fresh Match locations. VDSS is already accepting applications for summer 2027: applications received after August 31, 2026 count toward the 2027 season and will be processed starting next spring.
Lost Cards, Stolen Benefits, and Spoiled Food
A lost, stolen, or broken card. Call the Virginia EBT help desk at 1-866-281-2448, which is staffed 24 hours a day. The old card is deactivated and a new card is issued. VDSS says replacement cards cost $4.99, taken out of your EBT balance. Make sure your address is current with your local social services office first, because the card goes to the address on the case.
Benefits stolen by skimming. This is the hard answer. The federal authority that let states replace SNAP benefits stolen through card skimming and cloning expired on December 20, 2024 and Congress has not renewed it. Thefts dated on or after December 21, 2024 are not federally replaceable. Virginia does not replace them with state money either. Report the theft to the help desk anyway so the card is killed and the fraud is on record, but do not expect the money back. Locking your card in ConnectEBT between trips, changing your PIN regularly, and checking your balance after every deposit are the real defenses.
Food spoiled in a power outage or a house fire. Federal rules let a state replace the value of food destroyed in a household misfortune. Report it to your local department of social services within 10 days of the event and be ready to document it, for example with a utility outage confirmation or a fire report. The replacement is limited to the actual value of the food lost, capped at one month's allotment.
The 3-Month Work Rule in Virginia
Since July 4, 2025, adults aged 18 to 64 with no child under 14 in the household can usually receive SNAP for only 3 months in any 3-year period unless they work or train at least 20 hours a week, receive unemployment compensation, or meet another exemption. Pregnant women remain exempt. Veterans, people experiencing homelessness, and former foster youth are no longer exempt groups.
As of October 1, 2026, there are no statewide waivers of this time limit anywhere in the country, and the area waivers that exist cover parts of 12 states that do not include Virginia. That means the time limit applies across Virginia. If you are in this group and your benefits are about to stop, ask your local agency about SNAP Employment and Training, which can satisfy the hours requirement, and confirm whether any exemption applies to you before the clock runs out.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the maximum SNAP benefit in Virginia for 2026?
For federal fiscal year 2027, which covers October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027, the maximum monthly allotment is $306 for one person, $562 for two, $808 for three, $1,023 for four, and $1,841 for eight, with $225 added for each additional person. Most households receive less, because the benefit is the maximum minus 30% of net monthly income.
What is the minimum SNAP benefit in Virginia?
$25 a month, and only for eligible one-person and two-person households. Households of three or more have no minimum and can be approved at $0 if their net income is high enough.
Can I use my Virginia EBT card at a restaurant?
Only through the Virginia Restaurant Meals Program, and only if every member of your household is 60 or older, has a disability, is experiencing homelessness, or is the spouse of someone who qualifies. Those households can buy hot prepared meals at participating VRMP restaurants. Everyone else cannot buy hot prepared food with SNAP.
Do Virginia SNAP benefits expire?
Your balance carries over month to month and does not reset. Under federal rules, benefits left unused for 274 days can be removed from the account, so do not let a balance sit for months. SUN Bucks benefits are different and expire about four months after they are issued.
Can I still buy soda with SNAP in Virginia?
Only through October 31, 2026. Starting November 1, 2026, Virginia SNAP will not pay for soda, diet soda, zero-sugar soda, carbonated energy drinks, or other carbonated drinks sweetened with sugar or artificial sweeteners. Milk, juice, sports drinks, iced tea, lemonade, and unsweetened seltzer stay eligible.
Will Virginia replace SNAP benefits stolen from my card?
No. The federal replacement authority expired on December 20, 2024 and was not renewed, and Virginia does not run a state-funded replacement program. Report the theft at 1-866-281-2448 so the card is deactivated, then lock your replacement card in ConnectEBT between shopping trips.
How do I get my benefit amount increased?
Report changes that lower your net income. A rent increase, a new or higher utility bill, out-of-pocket medical costs above $35 a month for a member who is 60 or older or has a disability, child care you pay to work or attend school, or a drop in earnings all raise the deduction total and therefore the benefit. Report through CommonHelp at commonhelp.virginia.gov, by calling 833-522-5582, or at your local department of social services, and keep the receipts.
Does Virginia count my savings or my car?
For most households, no. Virginia uses broad-based categorical eligibility, which removes the asset test for households under the 200% of poverty gross income limit. Bank balances and vehicles are not counted or verified in those cases.
