Applying for food stamps used to be pretty straightforward. You'd show your income, list who lives in your house, and wait for the EBT card to show up in the mail. But honestly, that’s not the reality for millions of people anymore.
A massive shift in federal law—specifically the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025—has completely rewritten the rules for work requirements for SNAP. If you haven't checked the mail from your local social services office lately, you might be in for a shock. The age limits are higher. The rules for parents are stricter. And some of the protections people relied on for years have just evaporated.
The New Age Bracket Is No Joke
For a long time, if you were over 50, you were basically "safe" from the most intense work rules. That's over. The federal government bumped the age for "Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents" (ABAWDs) up to 64.
Think about that for a second. If you’re 62 years old and looking for work, you’re now treated the same as a 22-year-old. You have to prove you’re working or in a training program for at least 80 hours a month. If you don’t, you only get three months of food assistance in a three-year period. That’s it.
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What Actually Counts as Work?
It’s not just a 9-to-5 job. The USDA is actually somewhat flexible on what fills those 80 hours, but you have to document everything.
- Paid employment: This is the obvious one. Even self-employment counts if you can prove you’re making the equivalent of minimum wage for those hours.
- Volunteer work: In many states, you can hit your 20 hours a week by volunteering at a non-profit.
- SNAP E&T: These are state-run "Employment and Training" programs. They’re actually pretty decent because they often pay for your bus pass or work boots while you’re learning a trade.
- Workfare: Some people "work off" their benefit amount at a public site.
If you're doing a mix of these, that works too. But stay on top of the paperwork. If you work 19.5 hours instead of 20, the system doesn't care about the half-hour difference—it just sees a "non-compliant" month.
The Parents' Loophole Just Got Smaller
This is the part that’s catching a lot of families off guard. It used to be that if you had a kid under 18 in the house, you were exempt from these specific "ABAWD" rules.
Not anymore.
The age limit for a dependent child dropped to 14. If your youngest kid is 15, the state now considers you an adult without dependents for the purposes of these work rules. You’re back in the 80-hour-a-month bucket.
Who Still Gets a Pass?
Even with the new laws, there are still exemptions. You just have to be proactive about claiming them. You aren't subject to the 80-hour rule if you are:
- Pregnant (at any stage).
- Physically or mentally unable to work (you’ll need a doctor to sign a specific form for this, and "I feel stressed" usually won't cut it).
- Caring for a household member who is incapacitated.
- Already participating in a drug or alcohol treatment program.
Interestingly, the special exemptions for veterans and people experiencing homelessness that were introduced a couple of years ago have been scaled back or modified in many states under the new 2025 legislation. You have to check your specific state's 2026 plan because some, like Georgia and Indiana, are being much more aggressive about enforcement than others.
The 3-Month Clock Is Ticking
If you fall into the "must work" category and you aren't doing those 80 hours, you enter a "countable month" phase. You get three of these months. Once you use them up, your benefits get cut off until the next three-year cycle begins—which for most of the country is November 30, 2026.
The only way to get back on before then is to start working the 80 hours and prove it for a full month, or to suddenly qualify for one of the exemptions listed above.
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Actionable Steps to Keep Your Benefits
Don't wait for the cutoff notice. Here is what you need to do right now:
- Check your "Certification Period": Look at your last approval letter. The new rules usually kick in at your next "recertification" or "mid-point report."
- Get the Medical Form: If you have a back injury, chronic depression, or anything that genuinely stops you from working 20 hours a week, ask your caseworker for the Medical Exemption Form. Take it to your doctor immediately.
- Report Every Change: If your hours at work drop because the boss is cutting back, tell the agency. You might be able to get "good cause" protection so that month doesn't count against your three-month limit.
- Look into E&T: If you can't find a job, ask to be referred to the SNAP Employment and Training program. It satisfies the work requirement automatically while you're enrolled.
- Update Your Address: This sounds basic, but if they send a "Request for Information" to your old apartment and you don't answer, your case closes automatically. Use your state’s mobile app to keep your contact info current.
The system is much less forgiving than it was two years ago. Staying eligible in 2026 requires more than just being low-income; it requires staying on top of the clock and the calendar.