Getting Started

Dear Parent/Guardian:

Children need healthy meals to learn. Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) offers nutritious meals every school day. Student breakfast costs $1.75 and lunch costs $3.25 for elementary students, $3.50 for middle, high, and secondary school students. Your child(ren) may qualify for free meals or for reduced-price meals. Students approved for reduced-price meals will not have to pay.

All meals served must meet standards established by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). However, if a student has been determined by a doctor to be disabled and the disability prevents the student from eating the regular school lunch, the school will make substitutions prescribed by the doctor. If a substitution is prescribed, there will be no extra charge for the meal. If you student needs a substitution because of a disability, please contact the Office of Food and Nutrition Services at 703-813-4800 for further information.

All children in households receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) are eligible for free meals benefits. Foster children who are the legal responsibility of a foster care agency or court are eligible for free meals benefits. Students who are eligible for Medicaid may also be eligible for free or reduced-price meals benefits based on the household’s income. Children who are members of households participating in WIC may also be eligible for free or reduced-priced meals benefits based on the household’s income. If your total household income is at or below the Federal Income Eligibility Guidelines, shown on the chart on the Application Instructions page, your child(ren) may get free or reduced-price meals benefits. Your child(ren)’s application from last school year is only good for the first few days of this school year. YOU MUST SEND IN A NEW HOUSEHOLD APPLICATION FOR EACH SCHOOL YEAR.

HOW TO APPLY
Households that are receiving SNAP or TANF for their child(ren) as of July 1 may not have to fill out an application. School officials will notify you in writing of your child(ren)’s eligibility for free meals benefits. Once notified your child(ren) will receive free meals benefits unless you notify the Office of Food and Nutrition Services that you do not want benefits. If you are not notified by August 7, 2024 you must submit an application. The application must contain the names of all of the students in the household, the SNAP or TANF case number, and the signature of an adult household member.

If you do not receive SNAP or TANF benefits for your child(ren), complete the application and return it to the Office of Food and Nutrition Services, 6840 Industrial Road, Springfield, Virginia, 22151. If you do not list a SNAP or TANF case number for the child(ren) you are applying for, then the application must have the names of all students, the names of all other household members, the amount of income each person received last month, and how often the income was received. An adult household member must sign the application and include the last four digits of the social security number. If the person does not have a social security number, check the box provided indicating none. You or your child(ren) do not have to be U.S. citizens to qualify for free or reduced-price meals benefits.

If you are applying for a foster child, who is the legal responsibility of a welfare agency or court, an application may not be required. Contact the FCPS Homeless Liaison/Foster Care Liaison’s office at 571-423-4332 for more information. If you are applying for a homeless, migrant, or runaway child, an application may not be necessary, contact the FCPS Homeless Liaison/Foster Care Liaison’s office at 571-423-4332 for more information.

An application that is not complete cannot be approved. An application that is not signed is not complete. You must send in a new application each school year.

OTHER BENEFITS: Your child(ren) may be eligible for other benefits such as the Virginia children’s health insurance program called Family Access to Medical Insurance Security (FAMIS) and/or Medicaid. The law allows the school division to share your free and reduced-price meal eligibility information with Medicaid and FAMIS. These programs can only use the information to identify children who may be eligible for free or low-cost health insurance, and to enroll them into either Medicaid or FAMIS. These agencies are not allowed to use the information from your free or reduced-price meal application for any other purpose. Medicaid officials or officials with FAMIS may contact you to get more information. You are not required to allow us to share this information with the Medicaid or FAMIS program. Your decision will not affect your children’s eligibility for free and reduced-price meals. If you do not want your information shared, please check the appropriate box on the Miscellaneous Information section of the application. You may qualify for other assistance programs. To find out how to apply for SNAP or other assistance programs, contact the local social service office in your area.

CONFIDENTIALITY AND NOTICE OF DISCLOSURE: School officials use the information on the application to determine if your child is eligible to receive free or reduced-price meals benefits and to verify eligibility. As authorized by the National School Lunch Act, the school division may inform officials connected with other child nutrition, health, and education programs of the information on your application to determine benefits for those programs or for funding and/or evaluation purposes. As per Federal and State regulations, we shall not disclose any personally identifiable information outside of FCPS. In addition, the FCPS Trust Policy ensures that FCPS students and families can access FCPS benefits and services without fear that information will be disclosed to federal immigration officials. For additional information visit www.fcps.edu/trustpolicy.

VERIFICATION: The Office of Food and Nutrition Services may check your eligibility at any time during the school year. The Office of Food and Nutrition Services may ask you to send information to prove that your child(ren) should receive free or reduced-price meals benefits.

DECISION QUESTION: If you do not agree with the decision on your application or the results of the verification, you may wish to discuss it with Kate Encomienda, at 703-813-4800.

FAIR HEARING: If you wish to review the final decision on your application you also have the right to a fair hearing. You can request a hearing by calling, or writing to Greg Rupert, Senior Manager, Food Services Administration, gmrupert@fcps.edu, 6840 Industrial Road, Springfield, VA, 22151, 703-813-4846.

REAPPLICATION: You may reapply for free or reduced-price meals benefits any time during the school year. If you are not eligible now but have a change, such as a decrease in household income, an increase in household size, become unemployed or get SNAP or TANF for your child(ren), fill out an application at that time.

If you need help filling out the application form, please contact the Office of Food and Nutrition Services at 703-813-4800. Return the complete, signed application to: Office of Food and Nutrition Services, 6840 Industrial Road, Springfield, Virginia, 22151.

You will be notified in writing when your child(ren)’s application is approved or denied.

What you will need to provide during the application process:

The names and incomes of every member of your household
The school, grade, birthdate of every student in your household
Your social security number and electronic signature
(Optional) A valid email address or phone number for district communication about the status of the application.

If you are ready to get started, click the button below to begin the online process.

Begin Application Process