In this TracFone Affordable Connectivity Program guide, we are going to cover everything that you might have in your head, such as eligibility criteria, benefits of TracFone ACP, and how to qualify for TracFone Wireless Affordable Connectivity Program.
So, without any further ado, let’s get started –
TracFone Affordable Connectivity Program Guide – Benefits, Eligibility, and How to apply
TracFone Wireless is an American Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) that provides prepaid service and various branded smartphones to use with their service. It is a prepaid and no-contract mobile phone provider that holds contracts with most of the famous carriers in the country, including Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and US Cellular.
The company owns and offers services and products under different brands, including TracFone, SafeLink Wireless, Straight Talk, Simple Mobile, Total Wireless, Walmart Family Mobile, Net10 Wireless, etc.
Each of these brands has its purpose and is best suitable for a specific group of people. Hence, TracFone is one of the brands of TracFone Wireless company that offers its services under the Affordable Connectivity Program.
Let me share about this program and how it can help eligible households cut down on monthly expenses on phone bills.
What is the TracFone Affordable Connectivity Program?
Affordable Connectivity Program(ACP) is a federal government-aided program initiated by the Federal Communications Commission (FCP) to provide wireless internet benefits to low-income households and people in need to enable easy internet access.
The ACP program provides a subsidy to the participating company to offer a discount on eligible households’ monthly broadband internet service. The discount ranges from $30-$75 for some eligible families.
Tracfone is the participating broadband provider under the ACP program that will apply this discount to your broadband plan, making it the Tracfone Affordable Connectivity Program. Tracfone provides the benefits of ACP programs.
Below, we have shared some of the benefits of the TracFone Affordable Connectivity Program.
Benefits of TracFone Affordable Connectivity Program
If you are eligible for TracFone Affordable Connectivity Program, you can get these benefits –
- Free unlimited talk
- Free unlimited text
- 3 GB of unlimited data
- Free smartphones
- Monthly discounts of up to $30 (If you are residents of non-tribal areas in the United States)
- Monthly discounts of up to $75 (If you are residents of tribal land in the US).
- A one-time discount of up to $100 to assist you in affording your desired tablet, laptop, or even desktop computer.
However, you must contribute at least $10 and not more than $50 towards purchasing any of these devices.
However, you must be ACP-eligible if you wish to apply for Tracfone ACP to avail of the above benefits. You can examine whether you are eligible for Tracfone ACP by reading the eligibility criteria shared below.
Eligibility Criteria for TracFone Affordable Connectivity Program
You must be an adult
You must be 18 or more years old to qualify for Tracfone ACP.
You have a low income
This is the prerequisite to qualify for TracFone ACP. Your income must be at or below 200% of the federal poverty guidelines. You must check your state’s FPG (federal poverty guidelines) to see whether you meet the minimum requirement.
You must be a participant in any government assistance program
However, if your income doesn’t meet the eligibility criteria, you can become a participant in any of the below-mentioned government support programs to qualify for the TracFone Affordable Connectivity Program.
- Lifeline
- Medicaid
- Supplemental Security Income(SSI)
- Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program(SNAP)
- Federal Public Housing Assistance
- Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children(WIC)
- Veterans and Survivors Pension Benefit Fund Program.
- If you are a beneficiary of the free and reduced-price school breakfast program or school lunch program.
- You received a Federal Pell Grant during the recent award year.
If you are an inhabitant of Tribal areas, you can qualify for the TracFone Affordable Connectivity Program if you participate in any of the following programs below.
- Tribal TANF
- Bureau of Indian Affairs General Assistance
- Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations
You must fulfill any one of the two requirements above. Either you must have a low income, or you are a participant of any one government-aided program. Besides this, only one discount is permitted per household.
You must be a resident of a US state where TracFone offers its ACP services
The last requirement is to be a resident of the states where TracFone offers its services. We have shared the list of the states where TracFone offers its services.
Once you know you are eligible, you must provide certain documents to prove your eligibility. You check the list of essential documents required for application for the Tracfone Affordable Connectivity Program.
Essential documents to get enrolled in TracPhone Affordable Connectivity Program
Personal details
You will need a document furnishing your details like full name, place of birth, and residential address. You can submit one of the following documents for such information.
- A valid government, military, state, or Tribal ID
- Birth Certificate
- Passport
- Driver’s license
- Certificate of US Citizenship or Naturalization
- Permanent Resident Card or Green Card
- Taxpayer Identification Number(ITIN) document
Identity
You can submit any of the following documents to prove your identity.
- Lease or mortgage statement
- A recent copy of the tax return
Eligibility documents
This document reveals by which eligibility criteria you are eligible to apply for Tracfone ACP.
If you are eligible via the income criteria, you must provide a document that shows your income at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines of your state. You can produce any one among the following documents in this regard.
- Previous year’s federal, state, or Tribal tax return
- Paycheck stub
- Current income statement
- Veterans Administration statement of benefits
- Unemployment or worker’s compensation statement of benefits
- Pension or retirement statement of benefits
- Child support award
- Your Social Security statement of benefits
- divorce decree
If you become eligible via participating in any government support programs mentioned above, you can furnish one among the following documents to prove your participation.
- Benefit award letter
- Statement of benefits
- Approval letter
- Benefit verification letter
The document you furnish in support of your participation in the government-aided program must have your full name, the name of the establishment that issued the document to you, the name of the program, and an issue date within the last year.
Emancipated minor
You can still apply for the Affordable Connectivity Program if you are an emancipated minor.
You can provide one of the following documents.
- A court document
- A certificate of emancipation
It is imperative to note that you only need to submit copies of the documents mentioned above, not the originals.
Also, it would help you if you take copies of the documents using a clear camera, copy machine, scanner, or smartphone. You make sure to submit clear images to maximize your chances of qualifying for the Tracfone Affordable Connectivity Program.
How to apply for the TracFone Affordable Connectivity Program?
You can follow the below steps to apply for the Tracfone Affordable Connectivity Program –
- Check whether you are Tracfone ACP – eligible by referring to the eligibility criteria mentioned on this page. Also, ensure you are an inhabitant of one of the states where Tracfone offers its services.
- Then, visit the acpbenefit.org website and fill out an application form.
- Select your service provider (TracFone) and preferred plan.
- After completion, submit your application or print out a mail-in application.
Alternatively, you can follow these simple steps if you already have copies of your eligibility documents.
- You can also apply for the TracFone ACP by visiting tracfone.com/ebb.
- Open the site and click on ‘Apply now.’
- Complete the application form by providing your ZIP code, email address, personal information, and other required details.
- Upload the copies of eligibility documents.
- Once you are done with all that, you can submit your application.
- You would have to wait a couple of days till the TracFone team informs you if your application was successful.
- Afterward, enjoy your ACP benefits if approved.
Procedure for existing and new TracFone Customer
Existing Tracfone customer
If you are an existing Tracfone customer, you must visit the National Verifier to check whether you qualify for the program or not. If you are eligible, you can now fill in the ACP enrollment form by visiting the Tracfone site and following the application details mentioned above.
If you qualify for Tracfone ACP, you will get monthly benefits of up to $30 at the beginning of the following month.
New TracFone Customer
Suppose you are a new customer and wish to transfer to Tracfone ACP. You should first visit the National Verifier to see whether you meet the minimum eligibility requirements for Tracfone ACP. If you successfully meet the National Verifier requirements, you can now transfer from your current provider to Tracfone.
You will need to apply through the Tracfone ACP enrollment form by following the application procedure mentioned on this page.
Once the Tracfone team approves your application, you can avail the benefits of Tracfone ACP.
You must note that you are permitted to make such transfers only once a month as you wish to transfer your ACP benefit to Tracfone. You cannot change your ACP service provider twice in the same month.
In case you find any issues, you can consider visiting the nearest TracFone store so that you can be helped on how to get started with this procedure. If your issue remains unsolved, you can also reach Tracfone’s customer support team on 1-800-867-7183.
Comparison between TracFone ACP and TracFone EBB
The Tracfone Emergency Broadband Benefit or Tracfone EBB program was initiated to help struggling households afford internet service during the COVID-19 pandemic. This program helped by providing discounts and other incredible offers from this carrier to enable people access to the internet to work or learn online. The TracFone EBB program was offered from the onset of the pandemic and expired on 31 December 2021.
Since it benefitted millions, the government decided to modify it and created a new ACP program to provide internet access to low-income households. Therefore, all those benefiting from the EBB program enjoyed its benefits up to 1 March 2022. After that, they were required to reapply for the ACP program.
Apart from this, the benefits offered by both Tracfone EBB and Tracfone ACP differ slightly.
To illustrate, a few non-tribal land inhabitants enjoyed discounts of up to $50 on their monthly cell phone bills. Now under ACP, those who qualify and live on non-tribal lands enjoy discounts of up to $30 on their monthly phone bills. However, the benefits for tribal land inhabitants are the same in both programs providing discounts of up to $75 every month.
Regarding the timelines, the Tracfone EBB program was temporary as it was initiated in response to the Covid -19 pandemic. However, its counterpart Tracfone ACP is a long-term program.
Regarding eligibility criteria, the requirements of the TracFone EBB differ from that of the TracFone ACP in terms of income criteria. Your annual income must stand at or be below 135% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines for the LifeLine, whereas to qualify for the TracFone ACP, your income must stand or be below 200% of the FPG.
Ultimately, Tracfone EBB allowed the loss of income as one of its qualifications that made all affected individuals eligible for the TracFone EBB program. But this is not the case with TracFone ACP. Even if you qualify due to loss of income, you have to reverify with the National Verifier before being permitted to benefit from this carrier’s ACP facility.
So, this is how you can apply for the Tracfone Affordable Connectivity Program. Hopefully, this guide will help you in solving your queries.
You can find the answer to some frequently asked questions below.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the TracFone ACP program?
TracFone ACP program is a government-aided program to ensure internet access to low-income households. TracFone, one of the internet service providers, offers discounts to eligible households on monthly phone bills under the ACP program. The discount ranges from $30-$75 for some tribal land inhabitants.
Does Tracfone do the ACP program?
Yes, TracFone is a participant in the US government’s ACP and LifeLine program.
I am Already an Existing EBB Customer in TracFone. What Can I Do?
If you benefited from the earlier TracFone EBB program, you could still get the benefits of the TracFone ACP facility. However, as the TracFone EBB program expired on 31 December 2021, you were able to avail of its benefit up to 1 March 2022.
After the 60-day transition period lapsed, you had to reapply for the ACP program to continue enjoying discounts on your monthly phone bills.
What States does Spectrum ACP Facility Available?
ACP services are available to more than 40 states in the United States. These States are New York, California, Texas, Iowa, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Illinois, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Nebraska, Mississippi, Illinois, Georgia, Maine, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Colorado, Louisiana, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, Illinois, Idaho, Indiana, Florida and California, and others.
