SNAP work rules change beginning Feb. 1
People showed up to a pantry in Englewood today to receive food and to get clarity about SNAP changes that begin Feb. 1.
Fox – 32 Chicago
Come Feb. 1, the nearly 42 million low-income Americans on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, can expect major changes.
The United States’ largest nutrition assistance program has been a funding flash point for the second Trump administration, taking center stage during the 43-day 2025 government shutdown when the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in October that it would not pay the next month’s benefits.
The bill that ended the shutdown restored funding for the program after a series of lawsuits filed by states challenged payment pauses, eligibility requirements and requests from the federal government for sensitive citizen data. Even so, Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” passed last summer, already included major changes to the program, including tightened work requirements and billions in funding cuts.
SNAP recipients must adhere to increased work requirements beginning Feb. 1 as part of the bill. Here’s what to know.
New SNAP work requirements coming Feb. 1
Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” passed in July, cut an estimated $186 billion from SNAP funding through 2034, according to the Congressional Budget Office. It also added new restrictions to the program, including expanded work requirements, that go into effect on Feb. 1.
- Under the bill, able-bodied individuals ages 18 through 65 without dependents must work or attend a work program, such as SNAP Employment and Training, at least 80 hours per month to receive benefits. Previously, the top age was 55.
- It also requires parents and household members to meet the additional work requirements if a dependent child is age 14 or older. Previously, those with a child under 18 were exempt from the requirements.
- Veterans, people 24 and younger who recently aged out of foster care, and unhoused people are no longer exempt from work requirements.
- It also restricted states’ ability to temporarily extend benefits beyond three months in areas where the number of jobs is insufficient. Now, they may only request a waiver if the unemployment rate in an area meets or exceeds 10%.Usually, SNAP can only be given to an individual or household for three months out of a 36-month period unless the participant meets additional work-related expectations beyond the general requirements. Previously, states could more easily get temporary waivers based on employment rates to extend benefits.
Additionally, the bill significantly restricts benefits to apply only to certain lawful permanent residents and U.S. citizens, and it eliminates eligibility for others legally present in the United States. This includes those who have qualified for conditional entry under the asylum and refugee laws or based on urgent humanitarian reasons, such as survivors of domestic violence or human trafficking.
States are also now responsible for up to 15% of benefit costs, depending on the payment error rate, and are saddled with increased administrative costs from 50% to 75%.
Tightened work requirements could weaken safety net
The USDA has said these changes, among others, are intended to cut down on fraud, a point often cited by Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins. The USDA’s SNAP webpage also says its rules “reflect the importance of work and responsibility.”
Rollins previously alleged that thousands of people who didn’t qualify were receiving SNAP benefits, saying the Trump administration will “make sure that everyone that’s taking a taxpayer-funded benefit through … food stamps, that they literally are vulnerable and they can’t survive without it.”
“Secretary Rollins wants to ensure the fraud, waste, and incessant abuse of SNAP ends,” the USDA previously told USA TODAY in a statement.
The USDA has not provided evidence to back its claims of mass fraud. The U.S. Congressional Research Service described SNAP fraud as “rare” in an April 7, 2025, report, stating that available data and reports indicate that many overpayments may be attributed to unintentional errors.
Advocates say the tightened parameters of a program that already had work requirements will result in more Americans falling through the cracks.
“You just have to wonder what the administration is trying to accomplish by removing protections that have been in place to ensure that the most vulnerable people in our society have some access to food security, some access to put food on their tables,” said Shailly Barnes, director of research and policy at the Kairos Center for Religions, Rights, and Social Justice. “This is actually just setting the stage to justify these deeper cuts to the SNAP program that are coming in 2027.”
Who gets SNAP benefits?
SNAP, formerly known as food stamps, provides what are known as Electronic Benefits Transfer, or EBT, cards to approximately 12% of Americans for a limited time to help purchase basic food items. A large number of recipients are elderly, disabled or children.
To qualify, households must be at or below 130% of the poverty line, meaning they earn no more than 30% more than the federal poverty guideline, which in 2026 was $15,960 for a single person, $27,320 for a three-person household, and $38,680 for a five-person household.
A one-person household had a maximum monthly allotment of $298 in 2025, while a three-person household could get a maximum of $785 and a five-person household could receive $1,183, according to the USDA. There are special additional rules for households with elderly or disabled members.
SNAP benefits are determined by states and funded by the USDA. Recipients must recertify regularly to maintain eligibility. Typically, benefits can only be provided for three months within 36 months, unless additional work-related requirements apply. Approved recipients are given a finite timeline to access their benefits.
