What To Do When Lifeline Service Ends

Lifeline and the Affordable Connectivity Program

Discounted phone and internet for low-income households

Broadband (high-speed) internet service is essential for conducting the necessary tasks of daily life, including learning and doing homework, telecommuting, looking for a task, banking, and accessing remote wellness services. This guide introduces the two federal programs that offer discounts on home broadband and wireless data service for qualifying low- and moderate-income households.

Lifeline and the Affordable Connectivity Program

Information technology's virtually impossible to accomplish the necessary tasks of daily life without being "connected." Calling a physician, hearing from an employer, attention a "Zoom" meeting, or being schooled at habitation during a pandemic—all of these activities, and endless others, depend on admission to reliable phone and cyberspace service.

In an effort to ensure that low- and moderate-income households take access to these essential services despite affordability problems, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) offers two programs that provide discounts on phone and internet service for eligible consumers.

Lifeline discounted phone and internet service

The federal Lifeline programme supports a discount of up to $9.25 per month (upwardly to $34.25 for residents of Tribal lands) on broadband cyberspace service or eligible bundled phone/internet service for eligible low-income households in every state. The programme also supports a discount of up to $v.25 for households that choose to use the benefit for voice-only service. (Phonation-just Lifeline support was scheduled to terminate on December. 1, 2021, simply that phase-out has been paused for 1 year.) The money is paid direct to participating service providers, resulting in a lower neb for you.

Only one Lifeline discount is allowed per household (not one per person). You lot can employ Lifeline for either telephone service (one home landline or ane wireless telephone) or internet service (including bundled telephone and internet) at home or via your wireless phone.

Eligibility

To qualify for the Lifeline program:

Your household has an income that is at or below 135% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines, or
You or a fellow member of your household (such as your spouse, or your child or dependent) receives benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Aid Programme (SNAP), Medicaid, Federal Public Housing Assistance, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), the Veterans and Survivors Pension Benefit, or certain Tribal programs.

When you apply, yous need to show proof of eligibility, which could be pay stubs, a tax return, or a bill of fare, alphabetic character or other document demonstrating that you participate in one of the accepted assistance programs.

To qualify for Tribal Lifeline, which provides an additional discount of up to $25 per month (up to $34.25 full), you must alive on federally recognized Tribal lands and have an income at or below 135% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines or participate in 1 of the help programs listed above (#2) or in Agency of Indian Affairs General Assistance, Head Start (simply households meeting the income qualifying standard), Tribal Temporary Aid for Needy Families (Tribal TANF), or Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations.

Learn more than almost how to qualify.

How to apply

You tin utilize for federal Lifeline:

Online: Use the Lifeline National Verifier awarding arrangement to create an account and see if yous qualify.
Past post: Print and complete an application (English language / Spanish) and mail service it with your proof of eligibility to: USAC, Lifeline Support Center, P.O. Box 7081, London, KY 40742.

If yous have questions most your application or would like an awarding mailed to you, contact Lifeline at 800-234-9473 or [email protected].

If yous qualify, you volition have ninety days to cull a phone or internet company and sign up for service. You lot tin observe a service provider that participates in Lifeline past using the online search tool.

Residents of California, Oregon and Texas should check with their phone or internet access provider or visit their state'south Lifeline website to find out how to apply. See "What else y'all should know," below, for details.

Learn more or get help

The federal Lifeline programme is administered by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC). The USAC website (LifelineSupport.org) provides boosted information almost the program, including your responsibilities (for example, recertifying your eligibility each year and notifying your service provider if y'all motion or no longer qualify for Lifeline) and your rights (to switch service providers and to receive service that meets standards prepare past the FCC, for instance).

Your service provider tin help with many problems, such equally service plan changes or billing questions. If you haven't started Lifeline nonetheless or your service provider tin't assistance you, y'all can contact the Lifeline Support Center (800-234-9473 or [email protected]), open up every day from 9 a.m. to 9 p.yard. Eastern Time. The USAC Help page offers more information.

What else you should know

If your Lifeline service is free, you must use it at least once every 30 days to maintain your service. If yous don't, you volition become a xv-twenty-four hours notice to employ it or it volition get turned off. Learn more.

Link Up help provides upwardly to $100 to qualified residents of federally recognized Tribal lands to put toward the cost of establishing home phone service. For service initiation charges of upwardly to $200, Link Upward also provides a deferred, no-interest payment plan to the subscriber for up to one yr. Acquire more.

Residents of California, Oregon and Texas apply for the federal Lifeline benefit through their state's own application process. For specific directions on how to employ for Lifeline in any of these states, select the land from the dropdown card on the National Verifier webpage and click "Go Started." (At least in California, the monthly service discount is greater than the $9.25 provided under the federal program, and you can authorize through participation in additional assistance programs. Acquire more in Consumer Action'southward "Connect to California LifeLine and Save!")

While the Lifeline discount can be practical toward an eligible broadband internet service, there are other options for discounted broadband (presented below); choosing one of these and applying your Lifeline disbelieve to a mobile vox/information service may be a better selection for many households.

Low-price and discounted broadband service

In addition to the Lifeline program, qualifying consumers now have two other ways to salve on high-speed cyberspace: discounted service plans offered by many of the companies that deliver broadband, and a monthly benefit of upwards to $30 ($75 for residents of qualifying Tribal lands) provided past the federal regime.

Depression-price broadband plans

For consumers who would rather use their Lifeline disbelieve to reduce the toll of monthly phone service than apply it to broadband service, one of the scattering of low-price broadband programs is a expert option. These programs include Access from AT&T, Internet Essentials from Comcast, Spectrum Internet Help from Charter, and offerings from a handful of other service providers and nonprofits. Learn more near these programs in Consumer Activity'south Getting Up to Speed: Broadband internet for low-income households.

Each visitor's depression-income broadband plan has slightly different eligibility requirements, plan features (such as information speed) and prices, but all are open up to households that don't exceed income limits or that participate in any of a number of assistance programs. Get plan details, including costs, features/speeds, needed equipment, eligibility guidelines and application instructions in Consumer Activeness's Low-income Broadband Plans publication.

Many of these programs have added special service plans for consumers who qualify for the Affordable Connectivity Programme (see below). These plans may offer faster speeds and/or more (fifty-fifty unlimited) information than the company's standard low-income broadband program. Applying the program benefit to one of these plans could result in gratuitous broadband service (though taxes and fees may be extra).

Affordable Connectivity Program

Most Lifeline participants, as well equally other low- and moderate-income households, are eligible to receive an cyberspace service discount of up to $30 per calendar month (upwardly to $75 for residents of Tribal lands) under the Affordable Connectivity Plan (ACP). The ACP replaced the Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB), a temporary service subsidy that was established to assistance consumers get and stay connected during the pandemic. While the ACP benefit of $30 is lower than the $50 the EBB provided, the ACP is a longer-term plan. It also is available to more households.

Eligible households can too receive a one-fourth dimension discount of upward to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer or tablet from participating providers if they contribute more than $10 simply less than $50 toward the purchase cost. Simply one monthly service discount and one device discount is immune per household. The monthly do good is paid direct to the participating service provider, resulting in a lower bill. Eligible customers can take the discount to a different participating service provider at any time, should they choose to switch providers.

Note: You tin receive both a Lifeline benefit and the Affordable Connectivity Program benefit at the same time—for example, a mobile phone with a Lifeline discount and home internet with the ACP disbelieve.

Eligibility

To qualify for the program:

Your household must have an income that is at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines, or
You or a fellow member of your household (such equally your spouse, or your child or dependent) must receive benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programme (SNAP), Medicaid, Federal Public Housing Assistance, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), Veterans and Survivors Pension Benefit, or certain Tribal programs, or
You received a federal Pell Grant in the current honour yr, or
You lot were approved for benefits under the free and reduced cost schoolhouse lunch (NSLP) or breakfast program, including through the Community Eligibility Provision, in the 2019-2020, 2020-2021 or 2021-2022 schoolhouse year, or
Your household meets the eligibility criteria for a participating provider'southward existing low-income internet service program.

Acquire more at Do I Qualify?

If you currently receive a Lifeline do good, y'all automatically qualify for the Affordable Connectivity Plan. You can receive both benefits at the same time, but y'all need to contact a participating provider to enroll in the ACP. Y'all tin utilize your ACP do good and your Lifeline benefit to the same or split up services.

How to utilise

Nearly households who received the Emergency Broadband Benefit will not have to have any action to go along receiving the new $30 monthly ACP do good afterwards the transition period ends on March 1, 2022. However, if you qualified for the EBB based on a substantial loss of income during the pandemic, or by meeting the eligibility criteria for a provider'due south COVID-19 relief/assistance program, you volition demand to requalify for the Affordable Connectivity Program.

Households located on qualifying Tribal lands will continue to receive a $75 monthly benefit and will non need to take any action to enroll in the Affordable Connectivity Plan.

If the transition from the EBB to the ACP will crusade your out-of-pocket costs to increase (every bit a result of the reduced monthly do good amount, from $50 to $30), contact your provider to choose to keep your current service plan or switch to a less expensive plan, if i is offered.

If you are currently enrolled in the Lifeline program, you lot automatically qualify for the ACP, but yous volition not receive the ACP benefit unless y'all opt in. Talk to your Lifeline provider well-nigh ACP-eligible services information technology may have bachelor, or contact some other net company participating in the programme.

If you exercise not participate in Lifeline only receive service through a company'due south depression-cost (low-income) broadband program, you lot may non need to apply again for the ACP benefit. Talk to your provider for more than data.

Otherwise, there are iii ways to utilise for the ACP: online, past post, or through a participating internet access provider. Learn more at the ACP "How to Apply" page.

In one case y'all're canonical, tell your current internet service provider that you desire the discount. Or, if you lot don't already take a service provider, or if your provider doesn't participate in the programme, observe a provider using the online search tool.