FAQ
Below are some common questions and answers to help you with the application process.
- WHO CAN GET FREE OR REDUCED PRICE MEALS?
- HOW DO I KNOW IF MY CHILDREN QUALIFY AS HOMELESS, MIGRANT, OR RUNAWAY?
- DO I NEED TO FILL OUT AN APPLICATION FOR EACH CHILD?
- SHOULD I FILL OUT AN APPLICATION IF I RECEIVED A LETTER THIS SCHOOL YEAR SAYING MY CHILDREN ARE ALREADY APPROVED FOR FREE MEALS?
- CAN I APPLY ONLINE?
- MY CHILD’S APPLICATION WAS APPROVED LAST YEAR. DO I NEED TO FILL OUT A NEW ONE?
- I GET WIC. CAN MY CHILDREN GET FREE MEALS?
- WILL THE INFORMATION I GIVE BE CHECKED?
- IF I DON'T QUALIFY NOW, MAY I APPLY LATER?
- WHAT IF I DISAGREE WITH THE SCHOOL'S DECISION ABOUT MY APPLICATION?
- MAY I APPLY IF SOMEONE IN MY HOUSEHOLD IS NOT A U.S. CITIZEN?
- WHAT IF MY INCOME IS NOT ALWAYS THE SAME?
- WHAT IF SOME HOUSEHOLD MEMBERS HAVE NO INCOME TO REPORT?
- WE ARE IN THE MILITARY. DO WE REPORT OUR INCOME DIFFERENTLY?
- WHAT IF THERE ISN'T ENOUGH SPACE ON THE APPLICATION FOR MY FAMILY?
- MY FAMILY NEEDS HELP. ARE THERE ANY PROGRAMS WE MIGHT APPLY FOR?
- HOW CAN I REQUEST A BALANCE TRANSFER OR REFUND FOR MY CHILD'S CAFETERIA BALANCE
- Civil Rights Nondiscrimination Statement
WHO CAN GET FREE OR REDUCED PRICE MEALS?
- All children in households receiving benefits from NJ SNAP or NJ TANF/WorkFirst-NJ are eligible for free meals.
- Foster children that are under the legal responsibility of a foster care agency or court are eligible for free meals.
- Children participating in their school’s Head Start program are eligible for free meals.
- Children who meet the definition of homeless, runaway, or migrant are eligible for free meals.
- Children may receive free or reduced price meals if your household’s income is within the limits on the Federal Income Eligibility Guidelines. Your children may qualify for free or reduced price meals if your household income falls at or below the limits on this chart.
| Federal Income Chart for School Year 2023-2024 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Household Size | Yearly | Monthly | Weekly |
| 1 | 26,973 | 2,248 | 519 |
| 2 | 36,482 | 3,041 | 702 |
| 3 | 45,991 | 3,833 | 885 |
| 4 | 55,500 | 4,625 | 1,068 |
| 5 | 65,009 | 5,418 | 1,251 |
| 6 | 74,518 | 6,210 | 1,434 |
| 7 | 84,027 | 7,003 | 1,616 |
| 8 | 93,536 | 7,795 | 1,799 |
| For each additional person, add: | +9,509 | +793 | +183 |
HOW DO I KNOW IF MY CHILDREN QUALIFY AS HOMELESS, MIGRANT, OR RUNAWAY?
Do the members of your household lack a permanent address? Are you staying together in a shelter, hotel, or other temporary housing arrangement? Does your family relocate on a seasonal basis? Are any children living with you who have chosen to leave their prior family or household? If you believe children in your household meet these descriptions and haven’t been told your children will get free meals, please call or e-mail your school, homeless liaison or migrant coordinator.
DO I NEED TO FILL OUT AN APPLICATION FOR EACH CHILD?
No. Use one Free and Reduced Price SchoolMeals Application for all students in your household. We cannot approve an application that is not complete, so be sure to fill out all required information. Return the completed application to one of your children’s schools.
SHOULD I FILL OUT AN APPLICATION IF I RECEIVED A LETTER THIS SCHOOL YEAR SAYING MY CHILDREN ARE ALREADY APPROVED FOR FREE MEALS?
No, but please read the letter you got carefully and follow the instructions. If any children in your household were missing from your eligibility notification, contact your school immediately.
CAN I APPLY ONLINE?
If available, you are encouraged to complete an online application instead of a paper application. The online application has the same requirements and will ask you for the same information as the paper application. Contact your school if you have any questions about the online application.
MY CHILD’S APPLICATION WAS APPROVED LAST YEAR. DO I NEED TO FILL OUT A NEW ONE?
Yes. Your child’s application is only good for that school year and for the first few days of this school year. You must send in a new application unless the school told you that your child is eligible for the new school year.
I GET WIC. CAN MY CHILDREN GET FREE MEALS?
Children in households participating in WIC may be eligible for free or reduced price meals. Please send in an application.
WILL THE INFORMATION I GIVE BE CHECKED?
Yes. We may also ask you to send written proof of the household income you report.
IF I DON'T QUALIFY NOW, MAY I APPLY LATER?
Yes, you may apply at any time during the school year. For example, children with a parent or guardian who becomes unemployed may become eligible for free and reduced price meals if the household income drops below the income limit.
WHAT IF I DISAGREE WITH THE SCHOOL'S DECISION ABOUT MY APPLICATION?
You should talk to school officials. You also may ask for a hearing by calling or writing to:
- Hearing Officer Name: Peter Starrs Address: 836 Newmans Lane, Bridgewater, NJ - 08807 Phone Number: (908)685-2777 Ext:3213
MAY I APPLY IF SOMEONE IN MY HOUSEHOLD IS NOT A U.S. CITIZEN?
Yes. You, your children, or other household members do not have to be U.S. citizens to apply for free or reduced price meals.
WHAT IF MY INCOME IS NOT ALWAYS THE SAME?
List the amount that you normally receive. For example, if you normally make $1000 each month, but you missed some work last month and only made $900, put down that you made $1000 per month. If you normally get overtime, include it, but do not include it if you only work overtime sometimes. If you have lost a job or had your hours or wages reduced, use your current income.
WHAT IF SOME HOUSEHOLD MEMBERS HAVE NO INCOME TO REPORT?
Household members may not receive some types of income we ask you to report on the application, or may not receive income at all. Whenever this happens, please write a 0 in the field. However, if any income fields are left empty or blank, those will also be counted as zeroes. Please be careful when leaving income fields blank, as we will assume you meant to do so.
WE ARE IN THE MILITARY. DO WE REPORT OUR INCOME DIFFERENTLY?
Your basic pay and cash bonuses must be reported as income. If you get any cash value allowances for off-base housing, food, or clothing, or receive Family Subsistence Supplemental Allowance payments, it must also be included as income. However, if your housing is part of the Military Housing Privatization Initiative, do not include your housing allowance as income. Any additional combat pay resulting from deployment is also excluded from income.
WHAT IF THERE ISN'T ENOUGH SPACE ON THE APPLICATION FOR MY FAMILY?
List any additional household members on a separate piece of paper, and attach it to your application.
MY FAMILY NEEDS HELP. ARE THERE ANY PROGRAMS WE MIGHT APPLY FOR?
To find out how to apply for NJ SNAP or other assistance benefits, contact your local assistance office, call 1-800-687-9512 or go to https://oneapp.dhs.state.nj.us/default.aspx.
You can also contact NJ Family Care or Medicaid at 1-800-701-0710 or www.njfamilycare.org for information regarding health insurance for your family.
For the WIC Program, call 1-800-328-3838 or go to www.nj.gov/health/fhs/wic.
HOW CAN I REQUEST A BALANCE TRANSFER OR REFUND FOR MY CHILD'S CAFETERIA BALANCE
Civil Rights Nondiscrimination Statement
USDA Nondiscrimination Statement 2022 (English Translation)
In accordance with federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.
Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.
To file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can be obtained online at:https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/USDA-OASCR%20P-Complaint-Form-0508-0002-508-11-28-17Fax2Mail.pdf, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant’s name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by:
- mail:
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
1400 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or - fax:
(833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or - email:
program.intake@usda.gov
This institution is an equal opportunity provider.
USDA Nondiscrimination Statement 2022 (Spanish Translation)
De acuerdo con la ley federal de derechos civiles y las normas y políticas de derechos civiles del Departamento de Agricultura de los Estados Unidos (USDA), esta entidad está prohibida de discriminar por motivos de raza, color, origen nacional, sexo (incluyendo identidad de género y orientación sexual), discapacidad, edad, o represalia o retorsión por actividades previas de derechos civiles.
La información sobre el programa puede estar disponible en otros idiomas que no sean el inglés. Las personas con discapacidades que requieren medios alternos de comunicación para obtener la información del programa (por ejemplo, Braille, letra grande, cinta de audio, lenguaje de señas americano (ASL), etc.) deben comunicarse con la agencia local o estatal responsable de administrar el programa o con el Centro TARGET del USDA al (202) 720-2600 (voz y TTY) o comuníquese con el USDA a través del Servicio Federal de Retransmisión al (800) 877-8339.
Para presentar una queja por discriminación en el programa, el reclamante debe llenar un formulario AD-3027, formulario de queja por discriminación en el programa del USDA, el cual puede obtenerse en línea en:https://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/resource-files/usdaprogram-discrimination-complaint-form-spanish.pdf, de cualquier oficina de USDA, llamando al (866) 632-9992, o escribiendo una carta dirigida a USDA. La carta debe contener el nombre del demandante, la dirección, el número de teléfono y una descripción escrita de la acción discriminatoria alegada con suficiente detalle para informar al Subsecretario de Derechos Civiles (ASCR) sobre la naturaleza y fecha de una presunta violación de derechos civiles. El formulario AD-3027 completado o la carta debe presentarse a USDA por:
1. correo:
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
1400 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or
2. fax:
(833) 256-1665 o (202) 690-7442; o
3. correo electrónico:
program.intake@usda.gov
Esta institución es un proveedor que ofrece igualdad de oportunidades.
If you have other questions or need help, call (908)685-2777 Ext:937701
Sincerely,
Peter Starrs
Business Administrator
