Allen County Department of Job and Family Services

Office hours: 8:00-4:30 Tues-Fri, 8:00-6:00 Monday

Ohio Direction Card (EBT Card):

To apply for cash and food assistance benefits (Ohio Direction Card), you must complete a face-to-face interview. The county will schedule that interview after you complete the application and mail it, fax it, or deliver it to the county agency. The face-to-face interview may be waived if you meet a hardship condition
It is important that you mail, fax, or deliver your application to the county agency as soon as possible as it could affect the first day that you may be eligible to receive benefits.
A case worker at your County Department of Job and Family Services can help you if you are having problems getting needed information. It is important that you inform your caseworker that you need help.

The Department administers traditional \"welfare\" programs such as Medicaid, Food Stamps, Title XX Social Services, Child Day Care, Fraud Investigation and Overpayment Recovery.

The Social Service Division provides direct services such as Day Care for children, Learnfare, Preventative Health Care, Information and Referral, Chore and Homemaker services for the disabled and elderly, and Adult Protective Services. Title XX (Social Services) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) monies are further utilized to contract with various agencies to provide additional services for the community including Child Protective Services, Adult Day Care, and transportation. These services strengthen the Lima/Allen County community by providing opportunities for self-sufficiency.

You can download your application for your EBT Card in Ohio here: http://jfs.ohio.gov/ofam/cmandfsa.stm.

EBT is the US government\s electronic based system in the US for payment of monies to those approved for food and cash benefit payments.

Check EBT Card Balance
States have their methods to log in and check your ETB balance online. We provide that information on our state pages.

Apply for EBT Card
Most states allow online applications for EBT Cards through the application for Food Stamps (SNAP Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) or cash benefits through Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). We provided this local office contact for those who want to apply for their EBT in person at this office. After applying for your benefits you will most likely need to come in for an interview at this or another local social service office.