FoodShare: Wisconsin QUEST Card

When you go shopping, look for signs at the store or farmers market to see if they accept EBT payments. When you check out, pay by swiping your QUEST card at the register. You will need to enter your PIN (personal identification number).

Pay at pickup

Some grocery stores let you order food online or over the phone, then pay with an EBT card when you pick up your food. You might pick up either curbside or in the store. When you pick up your order, you will swipe your QUEST card and enter your PIN. You can’t pay for your food ahead of time. Ask your local grocery stores if they offer this option.

Pay online

You can order and pay for your food online through Amazon, Walmart Grocery, ALDI (with Instacart), Target, Lou Perrine’s Gas and Grocery, Meijer, Ptacek’s IGA, Sam’s Club Scan and Go, Schnuck’s Market, and Woodman's Markets. These stores have an EBT card payment option. When paying online, you need to enter your QUEST card number and PIN each time you check out.

Some of these stores may deliver to you. If the store charges an extra fee for delivery, you must use a different payment method to pay the delivery fee. You can only use your QUEST card to pay for the food. You can’t use your QUEST card to pay the delivery fee.

If you have any problems paying online with your QUEST card, check your account balance. If you have money available and still can’t complete your order, contact the store’s customer service for help.

Note: At this time, the federal government has only approved Amazon, Walmart, ALDI, Target, Lou Perrine’s Gas and Grocery, Meijer, Miller and Son's Supermarket, Ptacek’s IGA, Sam’s Club Scan and Go, Schnuck’s Market, and Woodman’s Markets to accept online QUEST card payments in Wisconsin. The government may approve other stores in the future. Find a list of approved online retailers at Online SNAP Retailers.

You may use your QUEST card to pay for meals at a group site for senior citizens or have your meals delivered to your home. Ask if the site or provider can accept EBT payments.

You also can use your QUEST card to pay for meals at one of these places if the site can accept EBT payments:

• Drug and alcohol treatment center.
• Domestic violence or domestic abuse shelter.
• Homeless shelter.
• Group home for people who are disabled.

At these locations, you might use your QUEST card at each meal or only once a month.

• A new cardholder who has recently been approved for expedited benefits.
• A current cardholder whose QUEST card has been damaged, lost, or stolen and who cannot wait until they get a replacement card in the mail.

1. Fill out the Temporary QUEST Card Request form, F-02260A, and hand it in at your agency.
2. Once this form is submitted and you are at the agency, staff will:
   • Verify your identity. 
   • Determine if your case meets the requirements for receiving a temporary card.
3. If you are eligible for a temporary card, you will get the card while you are at the agency. Staff will help you activate it so it’s ready to use.

A temporary card will stop working after 30 days or after a new permanent QUEST card is activated, whichever comes first. The same day a temporary card is issued, a new permanent QUEST card will be requested for you. It will be sent to the address that is on file for you.

There is a limit of one temporary card per case, per 12-month period. There are a few exceptions to this limit:

• A temporary card that is issued when you have been recently approved for expedited benefits doesn’t count toward the limit.
• An additional temporary card can be issued if there are extenuating circumstances, and your case meets all other eligibility criteria. Examples of extenuating circumstances include, but are not limited to: 
  • Your card was lost in a household misfortune like a fire or flood.
  • Your permanent card doesn’t work, and you need to purchase food right away to help with a medical condition.

A temporary QUEST card works just like a permanent QUEST card.  

If you call the agency, a staff member can walk you through the eligibility criteria for a temporary card. However, a final decision will only be made in person at the agency.

If a permanent card has been requested for your case in the last seven days and you are issued a temporary card, the permanent card that has been mailed will be deactivated. That means that when it arrives, you won’t be able to use it.

Once a temporary card is issued, another permanent card will be put in the mail. When that permanent card arrives, you will need to activate it to start using it. Once you do that, the temporary card will be deactivated.

Only you and the people who are formally listed in your account can get a temporary QUEST card for your household. Examples of individuals who are allowed to pick up a temporary QUEST card include:

• Primary person on the case
• Other adult food unit members
• Authorized buyers
• Alternate payees
• Authorized representatives
• Legal guardians