To complete your Mississippi SNAP recertification, fill out MDHS EA Form 900 and return it to the Mississippi Department of Human Services before your current certification period ends. MDHS mails a Notice of Expiration about a month ahead that gives you the exact deadline. File on time, do the phone interview, and your monthly benefits continue without a gap.
When Your Benefits Expire
Every SNAP household in Mississippi has a certification period that sets how long benefits last before a renewal is required. Standard households usually get up to twelve months. Households where every adult is elderly or disabled can get up to twenty-four months. Households with unstable circumstances, or those with an able-bodied adult without dependents, may get shorter periods — sometimes just one to three months.1Legal Information Institute. Mississippi Code 18 Miss. Code R. 14-30.14 – Certification Periods
MDHS mails a Notice of Expiration in the month before your period ends. The notice states the date your benefits stop and the deadline for returning your renewal paperwork.2Legal Information Institute. 18 Mississippi Code R. 14-33.3 – Notice of Expiration If your certification period is only one or two months long, you’ll have received the notice back when you were first certified, not in a separate mailing later.
That date is the one that matters. Work backward from it. Don’t wait for the last day.
What Happens If You File Late
Missing the deadline doesn’t automatically throw you back to a fresh application. If you file within thirty days after your certification period ends, MDHS still treats it as a recertification. The cost is that your benefits for the new period will be prorated from the day you actually file, so you lose the days between expiration and submission.3eCFR. 7 CFR 273.14 – Recertification
File more than thirty days late and you’ll need to submit a brand-new application, sit through a new intake interview, and wait longer for benefits to resume.
Documents to Gather Before You File
Missing documents are the most common reason a recertification stalls, and MDHS can close your case if you don’t provide what they ask for in time. Pull this together before you open the form:
- Pay stubs covering the last thirty days for every household member who works, plus award letters or statements for Social Security, SSI, veterans’ benefits, unemployment, child support received, or any other regular income.4Mississippi Department of Human Services. Applying for SNAP
- Social Security cards or official documents showing the number for each household member. For a newborn, an SSS form from the hospital is accepted.
- Proof of residency, such as a utility bill or lease showing your current Mississippi address.
- Shelter and expense records: rent or mortgage, property taxes, childcare, and child support you pay out. These feed deductions that can raise your benefit amount.
- If anyone in your household is sixty or older or receives disability benefits, documentation of out-of-pocket medical costs above $35 per month, including prescription copays, equipment, transportation to appointments, and insurance premiums. This is one of the most underused deductions in the program.
You don’t need to document every utility bill. Mississippi applies a Standard Utility Allowance — a fixed dollar figure representing typical utility costs — if your household pays heating or cooling expenses, and that usually produces a larger deduction than itemizing would.5Food and Nutrition Service. Standard Utility Allowances Just confirm on the form that you pay those costs.
Filling Out MDHS EA Form 900
Form 900 is the same document MDHS uses for first-time SNAP and TANF applications. Download it from the MDHS website in English, Spanish, or Vietnamese, or pick up a paper copy at any MDHS county office.6Mississippi Department of Human Services. SNAP Forms for Clients
The first section asks for basic household information: name, date of birth, Social Security number, and relationship to the head of household for every person living in the home. If anyone has moved in or out since your last certification, report that here. The form then asks about citizenship and immigration status for each member.
In the income section, list gross monthly earnings — the total before taxes, not take-home pay — for every employed household member. Report all sources: wages, self-employment, Social Security, SSI, veterans’ benefits, unemployment, child support received. If someone recently started or lost a job, note the change and attach proof, such as a hiring letter, termination notice, or final pay stub.
The expense section covers rent or mortgage, property taxes, homeowner’s insurance, utilities, childcare, child support paid out, and medical expenses for elderly or disabled members. Fill in every field, even where the amount is zero. Blank fields trigger follow-up requests that delay your case. Sign and date the last page. An unsigned form gets sent back.
How to Submit the Form
You have three ways to get Form 900 and your documents to MDHS:
- Online through the Mississippi Economic Assistance (MS EA) portal, which lets you upload everything and gives instant confirmation of receipt. The EAE Client Services line at 800-948-3050 can help if you have trouble logging in.
- In person at any MDHS county office. Addresses and phone numbers by county are on the MDHS website.
- By mail to the MDHS centralized scan center. Send copies and keep your originals, since mailed documents occasionally get lost.
The online portal is the fastest and the only option that gives you instant proof of submission. If you mail or hand-deliver, ask for a receipt or keep your tracking number.
Expedited Processing in an Emergency
If you’re in financial crisis at renewal, you may qualify for expedited processing, which requires MDHS to issue benefits within seven days. You qualify if your household has less than $150 in gross monthly income and less than $100 in liquid resources, or if your combined monthly income and liquid resources are less than your monthly rent, mortgage, and utility costs.7Food and Nutrition Service. SNAP Eligibility Tell the caseworker right away. Expedited service only works if MDHS knows you need it.
The Phone Interview
After MDHS receives your form, a caseworker will schedule a mandatory interview. Most interviews in Mississippi are conducted by phone.8Mississippi Department of Human Services. Expiration of Waiver of Interview Requirements for SNAP Benefits in Mississippi The caseworker goes over your form, asks about income and household composition, and flags anything that doesn’t match agency records. Keep your pay stubs, receipts, and documents nearby during the call.
If the caseworker needs more proof of something, they’ll send a written request. Federal rules give you at least ten days to provide the missing verification.9eCFR. 7 CFR 273.2 – Office Operations and Application Processing Respond fast. If you can’t get a document yourself, say so; the agency can sometimes verify information through its own databases.
If you miss the scheduled call, phone MDHS right away to reschedule. A missed interview stalls your entire case, and if you don’t make contact before your certification period ends, benefits lapse.
Income Limits for FY 2026
To stay eligible, your household’s income must fall within SNAP limits. Mississippi follows the federal thresholds: 130 percent of the poverty level for gross monthly income and 100 percent for net monthly income after deductions. The current limits, effective October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026, are:10Mississippi Department of Human Services. SNAP – Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
- 1 person: $1,696 gross / $1,305 net
- 2 people: $2,292 gross / $1,763 net
- 3 people: $2,888 gross / $2,221 net
- 4 people: $3,483 gross / $2,680 net
- 5 people: $4,079 gross / $3,138 net
- 6 people: $4,675 gross / $3,596 net
- 7 people: $5,271 gross / $4,055 net
- 8 people: $5,867 gross / $4,513 net
- Each additional member: add $596 gross / $459 net
Gross income is everything before taxes and deductions. Net income is what remains after MDHS subtracts allowable deductions for shelter, childcare, medical costs (if eligible), and earned income. You can be over the gross limit and still qualify on net income, but only if your household includes an elderly or disabled member, in which case Mississippi waives the gross income test.
After MDHS Decides
Once the caseworker finishes the review, MDHS mails a decision notice. If you’re approved, the notice gives your new certification period and monthly benefit amount. Those figures may rise or fall from the last cycle if your income or household size has changed.
If MDHS denies the recertification — for excess income, missing documents, or a missed interview — the notice explains the reason and your appeal rights. You can request a fair hearing within ninety days by submitting the MDHS Programmatic Fair Hearing form to admin.hearings@mdhs.ms.gov. File within ten days of the adverse action notice and your benefits continue at the current rate until the hearing officer rules or your certification period ends, whichever comes first.11Mississippi Department of Human Services. MDHS Programmatic Fair Hearing Form One warning: if you keep receiving benefits during the appeal and lose, MDHS treats the continued benefits as an overpayment and collects them back from future months.
Reporting Changes Between Recertifications
Mississippi uses a change reporting system. You must notify MDHS within ten days when certain household circumstances change during your certification period.6Mississippi Department of Human Services. SNAP Forms for Clients Reportable changes include starting or losing a job, someone moving in or out, and income that pushes your gross monthly earnings above the 130 percent poverty threshold for your household size. Skipping these reports creates an overpayment that MDHS later collects by reducing future benefits, which can wipe out the renewal you just completed.