.52 Recertification.

A. A household may not participate beyond the expiration of the assigned certification period as described in Regulation .46 of this chapter without a determination of eligibility for a new period.

B. The local department shall provide the household with a notice of expiration of its certification period at least 1 day before the last month of the household's certification period but not earlier than the next to last month of the certification period except that:

(1) A household certified for 2 months or less shall be provided the notice of expiration at the time of certification; and

(2) The local department need not send a separate notice of expiration to a PA household if its Program recertification coincides with its PA redetermination.

C. The notice of expiration shall include the:

(1) Date the current certification period ends;

(2) Date by which the household shall file an application in order to receive uninterrupted benefits;

(3) Household's right to file an application and the right to file the application by mail or through an authorized representative;

(4) Telephone number and address of the local department and the name of an individual to contact for additional information;

(5) Consequences of failure to comply with the notice of expiration;

(6) Right to a fair hearing;

(7) Right of a household consisting of SSI applicants or recipients to apply for recertification at an office of the Social Security Administration;

(8) Notification to the household that to receive uninterrupted benefits the household shall:

(a) Appear for any interview scheduled on or after the date the application is timely filed, and

(b) Complete the processing steps of the interview and provide all required verification;

(9) Notification, if applicable, of the number of days the household has for submitting missing verification after the agency informs the household of any further verification needed to receive uninterrupted benefits; and

(10) Notification to the household that it is responsible for rescheduling any missed interviews.

D. Interview at Recertification.

(1) As part of the recertification process, the local department shall:

(a) Conduct an interview with a member of the household or its authorized representative at least once every 12 months for households certified for 12 months or less;

(b) Waive the face-to-face interview for hardship situations as described in Regulation .15C of this chapter; and

(c) Schedule any required interview so that the household has at least 10 days after the interview in which to provide verification before the certification period expires.

(2) If a household misses its scheduled interview, the local department shall:

(a) Send the household notice of the missed interview; and

(b) Schedule a second interview if the household requests another interview.

E. Delays in Processing a Recertification.

(1) If the household files a complete application for recertification by the date set by the local department, but the local department is unable to determine eligibility in time to provide uninterrupted benefits, the local department shall:

(a) Provide benefits to an eligible household retroactive to the expiration of the previous certification period; and

(b) Set a new certification period to begin with the expiration of the previous period.

(2) If the household files an application within 30 days after the end of the certification period the:

(a) Application is considered an application for recertification; and

(b) Benefits are prorated as described in Regulation .44C of this chapter.