Food stamp recipients in Massachusetts have until Nov. 29 to activate the new chip EBT card mailed to them, or the old card stops working that day. Massachusetts is not alone: Virginia, Maryland and New Jersey are already moving cardholders to chip cards, and Pennsylvania and New York follow in 2027.
The switch is meant to make EBT cards harder to copy, and the Massachusetts chip card page calls the chip “a safer transaction process.” For most people it means one activation step and a new PIN. For anyone who ignores the mailer, it can mean a card that fails at the register.
What Massachusetts cardholders have to do by Nov. 29
The Department of Transitional Assistance says on its chip and tap card FAQ that every client was mailed a new card over the summer. The page states: “You must activate your new chip/tap card by November 29, 2026, before your old card stops working.” A card not activated by then stops working that day, and benefits cannot be reached until a new one arrives and is activated…