WIC fair hearing: your appeal rights and deadlines

What you can appeal

Section 246.9 requires each State agency to give participants a hearing procedure to challenge a State or local agency action that creates a claim against the individual for repayment of the cash value of improperly issued benefits, or that denies participation or disqualifies the person from WIC. The State agency may run hearings at the State level, at the local level with an appeal to the State, or both in different areas.

The rule uses “individual” broadly. A request can come from the person, the parent, caretaker or another representative. It is defined as any clear expression of a wish to present the case to a higher authority, and the agency may not limit or interfere with the freedom to ask.

The notice you must receive

When there is a claim for improperly issued benefits, a participation denial or a disqualification, the State or local agency must tell the person in writing about the right to a fair hearing, how to ask for one, and that you can present positions or arguments personally or through a representative such as a relative, friend, lawyer or other spokesperson. The notice is not required when a certification period simply expires.

The deadline to ask

The agency must allow a reasonable period to request a hearing, and that period cannot be shorter than 60 days from the date the agency mails or gives you the notice of adverse action. The State may set a longer period. A request can be refused or dismissed only for four reasons: it arrived after the State’s time limit, the appellant or representative withdrew it in writing, the appellant failed without good cause to appear, or a previous hearing denied participation and no relevant change in circumstances is shown.

The calculator adds 60 days to the notice date to show the earliest the State may set the cutoff. Your State can allow more, and the notice itself should state the deadline you are working to.

Keeping benefits while you appeal

Participants who appeal a termination within the 15-day advance adverse action notice period must continue to receive benefits until the hearing official decides or the certification period ends, whichever comes first. This protection does not apply to applicants denied at initial certification, participants whose certification period has expired, or participants who become categorically ineligible. Those people may still appeal within the State’s time limits, but they do not receive benefits while waiting.

The practical lesson is to act within the 15 days. The calculator shows the date 15 days after the notice date. If your notice gave a different advance period, follow the notice and ask the agency to confirm.

The hearing itself

The hearing must be accessible and held within three weeks of the agency’s receipt of the request. The agency must give at least 10 days of advance written notice of the time and place, with an explanation of the procedure. You may examine the documents that support the decision before and during the hearing, be assisted or represented by an attorney or others, bring witnesses, argue without undue interference, question or refute testimony and cross-examine adverse witnesses, and submit evidence.

The hearing official must be impartial, with no personal stake or involvement and no direct role in the decision being contested. The procedure must not be unduly complex or legalistic, and the rules of procedure must be open to public inspection.

The decision and what follows

The decision must be based on federal law, regulations and policy applied to the facts in the hearing record, summarize the facts and give the reasons and the evidence relied upon. Within 45 days of receiving the request, the agency must tell you the decision and the reasons in writing. If it favors you and benefits were denied or discontinued, benefits begin immediately. If it favors the agency on repayment, collection resumes, even during an appeal of a local hearing to the State.

You can appeal a local hearing decision to the State agency if you ask within 15 days of the decision notice’s mailing date. A local decision binds both agencies unless it is appealed and overturned at the State level. If a disqualification decision is appealed, you do not receive benefits during that appeal. After the State level, the agency must explain further State review and the right to judicial review.

Records and privacy

Hearing records and decisions are open for public inspection and copying, but names and addresses of participants and members of the public are kept confidential. The record is retained under § 246.25 and available to you or your representative at any reasonable time.

This page cannot tell you how your State accepts requests, whether you can ask by phone or online, or what your notice says. If you are not sure, call the number on the notice before the deadline and keep a record of when you asked.

Sources

• 7 CFR 246.9, Fair hearing procedures for participants: eCFR text current through the October 29, 2026 issue date. Read November 2, 2026.

Edition read: 7 CFR 246.9 (eCFR, current through the October 29, 2026 issue date). This page summarizes the rule and does not replace it.