New work rules for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, are now taking effect in more states, including Illinois and Ohio, while others such as Texas began enforcing them last fall.
Able-bodied adults without dependents ages 18 to 64 must log at least 80 hours of work, job training, or volunteering each month if they want help buying food for more than three months in a three-year period.
Who is affected by the ABAWD time limit?
What happens if you cannot hit the 80-hour mark in a tough month? For anyone who relies on an EBT card at the checkout line, that is not an abstract change. Nearly 42 million people use SNAP, and analysts at the Congressional Budget Office estimate that the tougher rules will leave about 2.4 million fewer people on the program in an average month over the next decade.
One Big Beautiful Bill Act changes to SNAP eligibility
The shift traces back to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025, a tax and spending package signed by Donald J.
Trump that rewrites several parts of SNAP law. Federal guidance from the US Department of Agriculture and its Food and Nutrition Service explains that the law raises the upper age limit for the strict time limit from 54 to 64, narrows the exemption for parents to those caring for children under 14, and ends temporary exceptions for veterans, people experiencing homelessness, and young adults who aged out of foster care.
What recipients can do now
In practical terms, older low-wage workers and more parents of teenagers now have to chase extra hours or document volunteer shifts just to keep the grocery money coming. Hunger advocate Joel Berg told ABC News that “millions of people will unnecessarily be kicked off the rolls,” warning that many affected households are already on the edge.
Supporters, including senior Agriculture Department officials, argue that the rules promote work and reduce waste in the system. Rollout is uneven though, and KFF Health News notes that dates and details differ by state as the new standard for adults 18 to 64 without dependents takes hold.
For recipients, the safest move is to find out whether they fall into the new 18 to 64 group without a qualifying child and to keep careful records of every hour that might count toward the monthly total.
The official memorandum was published by the Food and Nutrition Service.
