Harrisburg, PA – Today, Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) Secretary Dr. Val Arkoosh encouraged eligible families who have not yet received their 2025 SUN Bucks benefit to apply online or by paper application by August 31. The federal Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer program, also known as SUN Bucks or Summer EBT, helps eligible families who qualify manage increased food costs during the summer months when their children don’t have access to free and reduced-price meals at school.
“I urge all Pennsylvania families who believe they are eligible for SUN Bucks and have not received a payment yet to use our Eligibility Navigator and apply online by the August 31 deadline for Summer 2025 benefits,” said Secretary Arkoosh. “We are very excited to see that most eligible children have already received their funds through the automatic SUN Bucks payments, but we do not want a single child who is eligible for this program to not receive the money for food that they are entitled to.”
Families can use the Eligibility Navigator to see if their children are automatically eligible or if they need to take action to apply by the August 31 deadline. SUN Bucks provides a one-time payment for households of $40 per summer month ($120 total) per eligible child. An estimated 1.3 million children in Pennsylvania qualify for this program which, is paid for by federal funds.
Applications can be completed on the SUN Bucks website or a local County Assistance Offices. Applications received after August 31st will be held and considered for 2026 SUN Bucks benefits that will be issued in Summer 2026.
If families already have an EBT card, SUN Bucks benefits will be automatically added to their card, if possible. Families who do not have an EBT card will receive a Summer EBT card in the mail. Replacement cards must be requested by calling the Statewide Customer Service Center at 1-877-395-8930 or by visiting a County Assistance Office. Families can prevent their SUN Bucks benefit from being stolen by using the lock/unlock feature available on all EBT cards. This can be done through the ConnectEBT mobile app and client portal at www.connectebt.com.
Free or reduced-priced meals during the school year provide critical nutrition to students that is an essential foundation for learning and positive child development. That’s why Governor Josh Shapiro’s 2025-26 budget proposal includes funding for universal free school breakfast for a third consecutive year, helping to ensure Pennsylvania’s 1.7 million students continue to receive free breakfast at school, regardless of income. As a result of universal free breakfast, more students are able to start the day with a nutritious, filling breakfast: in 2024, more than 90 million breakfast meals were served in schools – that’s nearly 10 million more meals than were served the previous school year.
Find more information about SUN Bucks benefits and start an application.