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Title 7: SNAP Page 23 Iowa Department of Health and Human Services Employees’ Manual Chapter A: Administration Electronic Benefit Transfer Revised June 20, 2025 EBT Card Interoperability EBT Card Interoperability Legal reference: 7 CFR 274.8 “Interoperability” means SNAP benefits issued to an EBT recipient can be redeemed in any state. All retailers must be authorized by FNS to accept SNAP. The Iowa EBT card meets the requirements that allow it to be used in all places that accept SNAP anywhere in Iowa and in other states. Authorizing SNAP Legal reference: 7 CFR 274.2 When an application is approved for SNAP, ABC entries transmit the authorization to the EPPIC® system twice each business day. ABC entries approved prior to 9:50 a.m. are transmitted to EPPIC at 10:00 a.m. ABC entries approved after 9:50 a.m. transmit overnight. Upon receipt of the authorization, EPPIC® sets up an EBT SNAP account for the household. The EBT account is permanently established in EPPIC® and is connected to the specific ABC case number under which the application is approved. If a SNAP case is closed and reopened under the same case number, the ABC entries to reopen the case will authorize a deposit of SNAP to the same account as was initially established for that case number. See Changes in Household Composition for guidance on managing household composition changes and cardholders on accounts. The only way to open a new account is to establish a new ABC case number. A new account may be needed if the original household is not intact, and benefits are still available in the original account at the time a reapplication is approved. The SNAP account does not close when the SNAP case closes. Cardholders can continue to use the account until benefits are exhausted. Once benefits are exhausted, the account remains open indefinitely on the EPPIC® system. Only HHS Central Office staff has the authority to close an account on EPPIC®.