SNAP's 3-Month Time Limit: Who Must Work 80 Hours Now
If you're an adult on SNAP with no young kids at home, there's a clock running on your benefits. A 2025 federal law changed who that clock applies to, and many people in their late 50s and early 60s are now on it for the first time. Here's how the three-month limit works, who's excused, and how to keep your food money coming.
AT A GLANCE
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SNAP has two sets of work rules. The general work requirements apply to most people age 16 to 59 who can work: register for work, take a suitable job if offered, and don't quit or cut your hours below 30 a week without a good reason.
The second set is stricter. USDA has long called the people it covers "able-bodied adults without dependents," or ABAWDs. Its newer memos call them "time-limited participants." If that's you, you have to meet an extra work requirement, or your SNAP stops after three months.
That second rule is the one the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025 changed. USDA told states on October 3, 2025 that the changes took effect on enactment, July 4, 2025, and that states had to apply them right away at every application and recertification.
What changed in 2025
Rule | Before July 4, 2025 | Now |
|---|---|---|
Ages subject to the time limit | 18 to 54 | 18 to 64 |
Child-in-household exception | A household member under 18 | A child under 14 in the same SNAP household |
Veterans | Excepted | Subject to the limit unless another exception applies |
People experiencing homelessness | Excepted | Subject to the limit unless another exception applies |
Former foster youth age 24 or younger | Excepted | Subject to the limit unless another exception applies |
Indian, Urban Indian, California Indian | No specific exception | Excepted, using federal Indian Health Care Improvement Act definitions |
Area waivers | Over 10% unemployment, or a "lack of sufficient jobs" | Over 10% unemployment only, with a separate test for Alaska and Hawaii |
One warning: USDA's consumer-facing work requirements page still listed the older exceptions when we checked it in October 2026, with a banner saying guidance on the new law was in progress. The federal regulation online also still shows the old wording. The October 2025 implementation memo and a June 2026 question-and-answer memo to states reflect the current law, so we've relied on those.
The 60-to-64 gap
The new law raised the time limit age to 64, but it didn't change the general work requirements, which still stop at 59. It also didn't change SNAP's definition of "elderly," which is still 60 and older.
So if you're 60 to 64, USDA's June 2026 memo says:
You're not subject to the general work requirements.
You are subject to the time limit, unless another exception applies.
Your state can't make you join a mandatory employment and training program. You can volunteer for one.
Elderly rules still help you, including the excess medical deduction and no cap on the excess shelter deduction.
What about Social Security? Retirement or survivor benefits alone don't excuse you. But USDA says getting disability benefits such as SSDI or SSI indicates you're medically certified as unfit for work, which is an exception.
Retirement benefits alone won't stop the clock. Disability benefits, like SSDI or SSI, generally will.
Who's still excused from the time limit
Federal rules and the 2025 memo leave these exceptions in place. If any of them fits you, tell your SNAP office and ask how to prove it.
Under 18, or 65 and older.
Medically certified as physically or mentally unfit for work. This includes people getting temporary or permanent disability benefits from a government or private source, and people whose unfitness is obvious. If it isn't obvious, a statement from a doctor, physician assistant, nurse, nurse practitioner, licensed psychologist, social worker or other medical professional your state accepts can do it.
Pregnant.
Responsible for a child under 14 who's part of your SNAP household. USDA's June 2026 memo says a parent whose child under 14 lives in a different SNAP household doesn't qualify for this one.
Excused from the general work requirements. That includes people already working at least 30 hours a week (or earning at least federal minimum wage times 30), meeting work rules for TANF or unemployment benefits, caring for a child under 6 or an incapacitated person, regularly taking part in alcohol or drug treatment, or studying at least half time.
A member of a federally recognized tribe, or someone who meets the Urban Indian or California Indian definitions. USDA's examples of proof include a Certificate of Degree of Indian Blood card, a tribal enrollment card, or paperwork showing you're eligible for Indian Health Service care.
How to meet the 80-hour rule
If no exception fits, you keep SNAP past three months by meeting the work requirement each month. Under 7 CFR 273.24, that means averaging 20 hours a week, which the rule defines as 80 hours a month.
Option | What counts |
|---|---|
Work | Paid work, work for goods or services, or unpaid volunteer work your state verifies |
Work program | SNAP Employment and Training, a federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act program, Trade Act training, or a Labor or Veterans Affairs program for veterans |
Combination | Any mix of work and work program hours adding up to 80 |
Workfare | The hours your state assigns, based on your benefit amount |
Job search by itself doesn't count as a work program. It can be part of a qualifying program as long as it's less than half the hours.
If you miss some hours for a good reason, such as your own illness, a sick family member who needs you, a household emergency, or no transportation, the rule lets your state count you as meeting the requirement if the absence is temporary. Tell your caseworker right away.
How the months add up
Not every month on SNAP counts against you. A month only counts if you got a full month of benefits while you weren't:
excused by an exception,
living in an area covered by a waiver,
meeting the 80-hour work requirement, or
getting a prorated first-month benefit.
Your state chooses whether to track the three-year window on a fixed or rolling clock. Ask which one it uses so you know when your three months come back.
If your SNAP was cut off
Before your state closes your case for the time limit, it has to send a notice. USDA says that notice must explain the action you can take to get benefits back, either by meeting the work requirement or by qualifying for an exception.
You can regain eligibility if, in any 30 days in a row, you:
Work 80 or more hours, or
Spend 80 or more hours in a work program, or
Combine the two for 80 hours, or take part in workfare, or
Become excused, for example by turning 65, becoming pregnant, having a child under 14 join your household, or getting medical certification.
Some states also let you qualify by showing you'll hit 80 hours in the 30 days after you apply. There's no limit on how many times you can regain eligibility this way.
If you regain eligibility and then lose your job or program, you can get three more months in a row, once per three-year period. The clock starts when you tell your SNAP office you've stopped meeting the requirement, so report it promptly.
States also have a small number of "discretionary exemptions." USDA says each one lets the state extend eligibility for one person for one month. It's worth asking your caseworker whether one is available while you line up hours.
If you think the state got it wrong, such as missing an exception or counting a month it shouldn't have, you can ask for a fair hearing. Our guide on appealing a SNAP denial walks through the steps.
Does a waiver cover where you live?
States can ask USDA to suspend the time limit in areas with high unemployment. Since the 2025 law, an area needs unemployment over 10% to qualify. Alaska and Hawaii can qualify areas with unemployment at or above 1.5 times the national rate. The old "lack of sufficient jobs" waivers were ended in late 2025.
USDA's status list for October 1, 2026 shows:
Waiver status | Count | States and territories |
|---|---|---|
Statewide waiver | 0 | None |
Waiver in parts of the state | 12 | Alaska, Arizona, California, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Wisconsin |
No waiver | 41 | Every other state, plus D.C., Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands |
A partial waiver covers only certain areas, so ask your state SNAP agency. Waivers usually last 12 months, and states can end them early.
Before you call
☐ Your SNAP case number and your most recent notice
☐ Your date of birth, and the birth dates of any children in your household
☐ Pay stubs, a schedule, or a signed volunteer log showing your hours
☐ Any disability award letter (SSDI, SSI, VA, or private disability)
☐ A short note from a medical provider if your health limits your work and it isn't obvious
☐ Tribal enrollment card or Indian Health Service paperwork, if it applies
☐ A list of questions: which exception fits me, how many countable months do I have, and when does my three-year window reset?
WHAT TO DO THIS WEEK
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Related help
Waiting on a decision? See what to do when your SNAP application status hasn't changed. If you need cash help while you sort out food benefits, our roundup of emergency grants for rent, utilities and bills is a good next stop.
Official sources
Last checked: October 23, 2026 (USDA implementation memos, June 2026 Q&A, waiver status as of October 1, 2026, and 7 CFR 273.24).
States run SNAP day to day and some details, like the three-year clock and discretionary exemptions, vary by state. Your state SNAP agency has the final word on your case.
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