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Most children who are eligible to receive SUN Bucks benefits will receive them without needing to complete a SUN Bucks application, these children are considered Streamlined Eligible.

In general, children who are income-eligible, able to be directly certified, or categorically eligible for free or reduced price (FRP) school meals are eligible for SUN Bucks.

Two ways students can get SUN Bucks

Automatically eligible (No Application Needed) if:

• Your school-aged child has been approved for free or reduced-priced meals by having filled out a school meals application in a school participating in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) or School Breakfast Program (SBP).
• Your child’s school reported your child as homeless, a migrant, or a runaway.
• Your child received SNAP, Medicaid (only those on Medicaid categories 401, 403, MA-SSI, or DDW), or TANF anytime during the school year.
• Your child is officially placed in foster care by New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD) under Title IV-B or Title IV-E of the Social Security Act (42 USC section 621 et seq.). This does not include informal or private caregiving arrangements that are outside of the state or court system.

If you are not automatically eligible, the child must meet the following criteria to apply:

Apply for SUN Bucks only if not automatically eligible, the child must:

• Must attend an NSLP/SBP participating school. Link here for list of participating NSLP/SBP schools in NM.
• No approved NSLP/SBP application on file with the school.
• Have a household income that is less than 185% of Federal Poverty Level. (NSLP income guidelines)
• If your student attends school that participates in the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) program and provides free meals for all, they are not automatically eligible and may still need to apply to receive the SUN Bucks benefit.
• Reside in the state of NM.

* There will be some students who are not eligible for SUN Bucks. Students who are not automatically eligible will need to apply; however, if a     student does not attend an NSLP/SBP participating school, the student is not eligible for SUN Bucks. Some Bureau of Indian Education       (BIE) and Private schools do not participate in NSLP/SBP.*

Important: only apply if not automatically eligible.

For school year 2025-2026, applications can be submitted any time between the current date through August 22, 2026, at:

• Online: 

 https://yes.nm.gov/nmhr/s/summer-ebt-information?language=en_US

• Mail:

NMPED

300 Don Gaspar Ave, Santa Fe, NM 87501

Attn: Summer EBT / SSWB

• Applications may be printed from the HCA YesNM website at:

https://yes.nm.gov/nmhr/s/summer-ebt-information?language=en_US

Applications received at a local ISD office, shall be sent to NMPED via email, after the application has been scanned. These will be sent to the following email : summer.ebt@ped.nm.gov . NMPED will process the application and provide eligibility determination.

There will be some students who are not eligible for SUN Bucks. Students who are not automatically eligible will need to apply; however, if a student does not attend an NSLP/SBP participating school, the student is not eligible for SUN Bucks. Some Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) and Private schools do not participate in NSLP/SBP

The first SUN Bucks benefits will be deposited on May 15, 2026. The first issuance will be issued to Streamlined Eligible students: the eligible students who received SNAP, TANF, or Medicaid benefits, the households who are homeless, migrant, runaway or in foster care. Students who apply prior to April 1, 2026 will be included in the first issuance as well. Additional issuances will occur later in the summer. Check here for future issuance information.

A new SUN Bucks EBT card will be mailed out to newly eligible students (if multiple eligible kids in the same household, benefits will be placed on the oldest sibling’s card). For those children who received in 2025, the benefits will be deposited onto the card issued then, as long as the parent/guardian and address did not change. If both parent/guardian and address changed a new card will be mailed to that address.

For those children that are on SNAP, TANF or MAGI-Children Medicaid, the address on file with HCA will be used to mail the card. For those other children eligible, the address provided by the school will be used to mail the card. Each year the child is eligible, the benefit will go onto that existing card.

Make sure your child’s school — or SNAP, MAGI-Children Medicaid, or TANF — has the correct mailing address on file. 

Yes. 

Families will have 122 days to use the benefits from the date they are issued. If there is any unspent benefit on the 122nd day, the benefits will be removed from the child’s card. After, benefits are expunged, they cannot be reissued.

A notice will go out to the families 30 days prior to expungement warning them of the unspent amount on the card.

If a parent, a child, or family member is a non-citizen receiving SUN Bucks, this does not affect immigration status and will not make you a public charge. We encourage families with school-aged children to apply for SUN Bucks. 

Call 1-800-283-4465 to help resolve the questions you may have.

You have until November 15, 2026, to ask for a Fair Hearing. You may reapply for SUN Bucks for the 2025-2026 school year any time through August 22, 2026.

Use it the same as SNAP benefits. Parents can use this card to buy healthy food at places like grocery stores, farmers markets, and some online retailers You can also use your card where you see the Quest logo.

Click here to view the Coordinated Services Plan Waiver Request form for 2025 and the CPS 2025 Public Notice