Resources Money, food, benefits and taxes
Food right now
Where to get a free meal or groceries when you need food right away, and how to apply for SNAP, the monthly food benefit on a card.
Soup kitchens serve hot meals on site; food pantries give groceries to take home. The City says free food is available to everyone in need. SNAP takes days or weeks and has new rules for non-citizens since 2026, so get food now and apply in parallel. A soup kitchen meal, WIC and school meals do not depend on status.
Start here
- Open the Food Help NYC map at finder.nyc.gov/foodhelp and pick the nearest place that is open. If the map does not open, call the City's 311 service: it answers 24/7 and names places near you. Say "Russian" and a free interpreter joins.
- Soup kitchens serve a hot meal on the spot; food pantries give groceries. Some places ask for ID or registration.
- People who only applied for asylum, and since April 2026 people granted asylum without a green card, cannot get SNAP themselves.
Four kinds of help: where to start today.
Food help in New York City, November 2026
| Soup kitchen | Food pantry | SNAP | WIC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What you get | A hot meal, eaten there or taken away | Groceries to cook at home | Money for food on an EBT (Electronic Benefits Transfer) card every month | An eWIC card for food, plus nutrition advice |
| How fast | The same day | Usually the same day, sometimes after registering | Up to 30 days; a one-time payment within 7 days if the household has little income and cash | By appointment: through the Wanda online assistant or at a local WIC office |
| Are documents needed | It varies by place, often none | It varies; sometimes photo ID and proof of address | Some, and the worker tells you which at the interview | Does not ask about immigration status |
| Does status matter | No, free food is open to everyone in need | No, free food is open to everyone in need | Yes, it depends on status | No |
Hours are as of November 2026.
Food Help NYC map
Any statusFree
The City's map of free food pantries and community kitchens with hot meals. 311 can also name places near you at any hour: say "Russian" and a free interpreter joins.
Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen
Any statusFree
A free soup kitchen at the Church of the Holy Apostles in Manhattan: hot meals to go on weekdays, plus a food pantry on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Everyone is welcome. For the pantry, newcomers register in person (it no longer takes new clients through Plentiful) with a photo ID (a New York State driver license or non-driver ID, or IDNYC) and proof of address. Passports, work permits and consulate IDs are not accepted.
St. John's Bread & Life
Any statusFree
A charity in Bedford-Stuyvesant (Brooklyn). Grab-and-Go hot meals are handed out at a window, no ID needed. The Digital Choice Food Pantry needs in-person registration: photo ID for each household member and one proof of address; no proof of income. Social workers are on site, and the Urban Justice Center gives free legal advice on SNAP, Cash Assistance (monthly cash) and Medicaid (government health insurance).
Food Bank For NYC Community Kitchen
Any statusFree
A free hot meal in West Harlem on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays; bring a photo ID with your date of birth. Food Bank For NYC's map covers about 800 places with free groceries and meals across the city.
Masbia Soup Kitchen Network
Any statusFree
Three kosher soup kitchens (two in Brooklyn, one in Queens) feed anyone in need, whatever their faith. Dinner is free and no documents are required at present; grocery packages are given once a week by appointment. Days and hours change, so check them on its website before you go.
City Harvest Mobile Markets
Any statusFree
City Harvest's map shows where free food is being given out now. Mobile Markets hand out fresh produce in all five boroughs, but only to residents of the borough where the market is.
Plentiful
Any statusFree
A free website and app (also by text and WhatsApp) that finds food pantries near you and, where allowed, books a time so you skip the line. It works in 9 languages.
Open the Food Help NYC map
Go to finder.nyc.gov/foodhelp on your phone, enter an address or cross streets and pick the nearest place that is open now.
Or call 311
Give your address or cross streets: 311 answers 24/7 and names free food sites near you. Say "Russian" and a free interpreter joins.
Download the HRA list
HRA, the City benefits agency, publishes the full list of food pantries and community kitchens as a PDF: more than 700 providers.
Book through Plentiful
If a pantry takes bookings, pick a time in the Plentiful app and skip the line.
What to bring
Many places close on holidays. Some advise bringing ID and a bag or cart.
SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, once called food stamps) is a federal program that puts food money on an EBT card. In New York City, HRA takes the applications. First check whether it is open to your status. Even if you do not qualify, you can apply for a child who is a U.S. citizen.
Gather household details
Names and birthdates of everyone who lives and eats with you, income, rent and utility costs, and savings. Give a Social Security number (SSN) for those who have one. A parent without an SSN who is not eligible for SNAP and applies for a child does not have to get one.
Submit the application
The easiest way is ACCESS HRA, the City's online account and app for benefits: nyc.gov/accesshra. You can also go to a SNAP Center, ask a partner organization, or mail or fax a paper form. To lock in your filing date, a name, an address (if you have one) and an electronic signature are enough.
Do the interview
The interview is required. Do it by phone at 718-762-7669, Monday to Friday 8:30 am to 5 pm (HRA also lists 929-273-1872; try both), or in person at a SNAP Center. The call takes about 30 minutes. Say "Russian" and a free interpreter joins; at a SNAP Center the interpreter is free too, as City law (Local Law 30) requires. For a faster one-time payment, finish the interview within 7 days of applying; if you do not finish it within 30 days, the application is rejected.
Send documents
The most common requests are photo ID, pay stubs, utility bills and a lease; the worker tells you what you need. Take photos or upload PDFs in the ACCESS HRA app. You can also fax them to 917-639-2544, bring them to a SNAP Center or mail copies (not originals) to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, P.O. Box 29008, Brooklyn, NY 11202; write your name and case number on every page.
Wait for the decision
HRA answers within 30 days. If the household has little income and cash, or housing costs more than its income, a one-time payment can come within 7 days. You can see the status on ACCESS HRA; the decision comes by mail.
Get your EBT card
EBT (Electronic Benefits Transfer) is a debit-style card that gets your food money each month. After approval it is mailed within 5 business days. Any SNAP Center gives temporary cards; you can pick up the permanent card at 785 Atlantic Ave, Brooklyn (1st floor).
Protect the card
Thieves steal from EBT cards. Lock the card in the ebtEDGE app and unlock it only before you buy, check terminals for skimmers, change your PIN, check your balance often and never give card details over the phone.
Renew on time
Benefits are usually approved for a year; you can recertify starting 60 days before the end. Some people must send a short report every six months. Since October 1, 2026, work rules (ABAWD, Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents) apply again to adults 18 to 64 with no child under 14; benefits can first stop in January 2027. An HRA worker can tell you whether this applies to you. Exceptions include pregnancy, caring for someone who cannot care for themselves, and a mental or physical barrier to work. If SNAP closed under these rules, reapply on ACCESS HRA: HRA says the month count restarted on October 1, 2026.
HRA: ABAWD Update
Any statusNYC residentsFree
HRA's page on the work rules: who they apply to, the Medical Statement form, how to restore SNAP and reapply on ACCESS HRA.
SNAP Centers take applications and documents, hold interviews and give out temporary EBT cards. Open Monday to Friday 8:30 am to 5 pm; addresses as of November 2026. You can go to any center, even outside your borough.
SNAP Centers in the Bronx
NYC residentsFree
Two centers: Crotona and Hunts Point (work-requirement staff at Hunts Point see people only from 8:30 to 9:00 am).
SNAP Centers in Brooklyn
NYC residentsFree
Four centers: Clinton Hill (for people whose needs ACCESS HRA or the phone line could not meet), Coney Island, East New York and Williamsburg.
SNAP Centers in Manhattan
NYC residentsFree
Two SNAP Centers (East End and Washington Heights) and two HRA Benefits Access Centers that also handle SNAP: Lower Manhattan and St. Nicholas.
SNAP Centers in Queens
NYC residentsFree
Three centers: Jamaica, the Queens SNAP Center (Long Island City, entrance on One Honeywell Street) and Rockaway.
SNAP Center in Staten Island
NYC residentsFree
The Richmond SNAP Center.
WIC: nutrition during pregnancy and for children under 5
Any statusFree
WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children) is a New York State Department of Health program. It gives an eWIC card for healthy food and nutrition advice if you are pregnant, recently gave birth, are breastfeeding or care for a child under 5. It does not ask about status. If anyone in your household gets SNAP, Medicaid or the Essential Plan (a low-cost State health plan), you likely meet the income rule. You can start online: on the State WIC site, health.ny.gov/prevention/nutrition/wic, open the chat with the Wanda assistant. It asks a few questions, checks whether you qualify and sends your details to a local WIC office, which sets up the appointment.
Free school breakfast and lunch
Any statusFree
Every New York City public school student gets free breakfast, lunch and after-school meals. The Department of Education does not track a family's immigration status, and every child has the right to attend public school. In summer, free meals are also served at some schools, community pools, parks and libraries.
Met Council
Any statusFree
Met Council's helpline points you to food and other help. If you suddenly lose access to food (your SNAP case closes, food spoils in a power outage), it may give you a one-time Emergency Food Card. To check whether you qualify and apply, email Help@metcouncil.org; if you have no food today, call 311 and say "Russian": a free interpreter joins and 311 names places to eat near you. Calling Met Council is faster than email, but the line is in English. Its partner pantries, including kosher and halal ones, serve everyone regardless of faith, sexual orientation or gender.
NYC Aging: senior centers and Aging Connect
Any statusFree
NYC Aging, the City's agency for older adults, has more than 300 older adult centers with a daily meal and a case manager who can tell you about other programs. Aging Connect explains how to get home-delivered meals for people who cannot leave home and how to find food pantries. Send your question through the Aging Connect online form.
- SNAP
- Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the federal food program that HRA handles in New York City; once called food stamps. The money is paid onto an EBT card.
- HRA
- Human Resources Administration, the New York City agency for cash assistance, SNAP and Medicaid. Part of the Department of Social Services (DSS).
- EBT
- Electronic Benefits Transfer: the card that receives benefits (food money, sometimes cash assistance).
- Soup kitchen and food pantry
- A soup kitchen serves a hot meal on site; a food pantry gives you groceries to take home.
- Expedited SNAP
- Fast-track SNAP: a one-time payment within 7 days for households with very little income and cash, or with housing costs above their income.
This is general information, not legal advice: QARAVAN has no lawyers. QARAVAN does not help anyone enter the US and cannot arrange visas, invitations, sponsorship or evacuation. For your own case, talk to a licensed immigration attorney or a representative accredited by the U.S. Department of Justice.
All pages: Money, food, benefits and taxes
Sources, checked November 2026
- nyc.gov/site/hra/help/able-bodied-adults-without-dependents.page
- nyc.gov/site/hra/locations/snap-locations.page
- finder.nyc.gov/foodhelp
- nyc.gov/site/foodpolicy/programs/programs.page
- access.nyc.gov/programs/women-infants-and-children-wic
- schools.nyc.gov/school-life/school-meals
- a069-access.nyc.gov/accesshra
- holyapostlesnyc.org
- holyapostlesnyc.org/soup-kitchen-and-pantry/pantry-program
- breadandlife.org/how-to-get-help
- foodbanknyc.org/find-food/community-kitchen
- masbia.org/faq_for_eating_at_masbia
- cityharvest.org/mobile-markets
- plentiful.org
- metcouncil.org/services/crisis-intervention-services
- nyc.gov/site/dfta/about/contact-aging-connect.page