SNAP Eligibility – Updated October 2025 – September 2026

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Purpose

The Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 authorizes the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). SNAP is designed to increase the limited food purchasing power of low-income Households and thus alleviate hunger and malnutrition.

Income Limits

Gross Income Limits Apply First to Households with no Elderly or Disabled Members (Regular Households)

Family Size	Gross Monthly Income
1	1696
2	2292
3	2888
4	3483
5	4079
6	4675
7	5271
8	5867
9	6463
10	7059

Net Income Limits Apply to all Regular Households Who Meet the Net Income Limits and to Households with Elderly and /or Disabled Members **

Family Size	Monthly Income	Maximum Benefits
1	1305	298
2	1763	546
3	2221	785
4	2680	994
5	3138	1183
6	3596	1421
7	4055	1571
8	4513	1789
9	4972	2007
10	5431	2225

Deductions

• 20% of earned income.
• Standard deduction
• Farm loss
• Childcare
• Medical cost incurred by aged or disabled member.
• Child support payments if legally obligated
• Shelter cost

Resource Limits

$3,000 regular households

$4,500* if one member is individual with disability or sixty (60) years of age or older

All households: $5,500 for twelve (12) months. After twelve (12) months, limits return to $3,000 regular households, and $4,500 for those 60 years of age and over and those living with a disability. This resource limit can only be applied for twelve (12) months in a five (5) year period.

Resource Exclusions

• A home
• Some non-home properties if income producing or determined to be inaccessible
• Life insurance
• Burial spaces (one per household member)
• Irrevocable burial arrangements
• Tax Preferred retirement accounts
• Certain Educational Savings accounts
• 1 vehicle
• Any vehicle used for transporting physically disable member
• Income-producing vehicles
• Vehicles used for self-employment
• $4,650 of value of vehicle for each employed person and student attending school

Countable Resources

• Cash on hand and in bank and credit unions (less income received that month)
• Stocks and bonds
• Real property other than the home (unless excluded)
• Mutual funds
• Savings certificates
• Some vehicles

Eligibility Factors

• Residency in the state
• U.S. citizenship or legal alien status
• Work registration
• Social Security Number
• Cooperation with child support

**Categorically eligible households do not have to meet income or resource limits. Categorically eligible households include:

• Any household with at least one member who receives TEA benefits.
  OR
• A household where all members receive SSI benefits.

SNAP ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

• Residency / Citizenship – Participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is limited to U.S. Citizens and certain legally admitted non-citizens.
• Lawful SNAP Household – A household is normally composed of individuals who live together and purchase food and prepare meals together. The following individuals may not participate in the Program: boarders, ineligible students, disqualified persons, and residents of certain institutions.
• Work Registration – All able-bodied individuals sixteen (16) years of age to fifty-nine (59) years of age who are not otherwise exempt must register for work. Exemptions are granted for school attendance, full- time employment, disability, care of a dependent under six (6) years of age, and care of a disabled dependent of any age. People who quit their jobs or who intentionally reduce their working hours to less than thirty (30) hours per week without good cause are subject to sanction.
• Requirement to Work – All able-bodied adults between eighteen (18) years of age through fifty-four (54) years of age who are not pregnant, or the parent of a minor dependent child must work at least twenty (20) hours per week or participate in a work program. Any individual who fails to comply with this requirement for at least three (3) months out of a designated 36-month period will be ineligible to receive SNAP benefits for the remainder of the 36-month period. The disqualification applies to the individual, not the entire household, and may be lifted if the individual complies with the requirement or becomes exempt from the requirement. (The State waives this requirement in certain areas and applies the personal exemptions granted by Food and Nutrition Service in other areas.)
• Resources – All households: Five thousand five hundred dollars ($5,500) for twelve (12) months. After twelve (12) months, limits return to three thousand dollars ($3,000) regular households, and four thousand five hundred dollars ($4,500) for those sixty (60) years of age and over and those living with a disability. The value of non-exempt resources cannot exceed four thousand five hundred dollars ($4,500) for households with at least one-member 60 years of age or older or disabled. The resource limit is three thousand dollars ($3,000) for all other households.
• Social Security Number (SSN) – Each household member who wishes to participate in the Program is required to provide a SSN or to apply for one before they are allowed to participate. Household members who do not comply with this requirement are disqualified from participation in the Program.
• Cooperation with Child Support – Parents applying for SNAP are required to cooperate with the Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE). Cooperation means providing the complete information or taken the necessary actions to obtain support for dependent children.
• Income – Households containing an individual with disability member or a member 60 years of age or older must have a net income at or below 100% of the federal poverty guidelines. All other households must have both a gross income at or below 130% of the federal poverty guidelines and a net income at or below 100% of the federal poverty guidelines.
  

Example 1:
A household consisting of a mother and two school-age children submits a SNAP application. The mother works 30 hours each week and makes $11.00 per hour. Her rent is $450 per
month, and she pays the following utility bills – electricity, natural gas, and telephone. The household is not entitled to a medical deduction and the mother does not have to pay
childcare.
The maximum monthly benefit for a household of 3 is $785 This household is entitled to receive a monthly benefit of $581.

Example 2:
A household consisting of a father, mother and two pre-school age children submits a SNAP application. The father works 40 hours each week and makes $11.00 per hour. Their
rent is $450 per month, and they pay the following utility bills – electricity, natural gas, and telephone. The household is not entitled to a medical deduction and the mother cares
for the children while the father works.
The maximum monthly benefit for a household of 4 is $994. This household is entitled to receive a monthly benefit of $621.