New Federal SNAP Work Requirement Date Set for November 1

Dustin Hare | October 22, 2025

Beginning November 1, 2025, approximately 5,500 Kansans will be in danger of losing their food assistance benefits if they are unable to comply with new federal work requirements for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Many SNAP recipients were already required to work 20 hours per week to be eligible for the program, but the passage of H.R. 1 by Congress in July extended those work requirements to new populations. 

Many of these new populations are people who typically have greater barriers to working consistently, like veterans, parents, and older individuals. Below, we cover each new group who will have to comply, as well as what they must do to meet the new requirements to keep their benefits. 

Who Are Subject to the New Requirements?

Adults Aged 60-64 without Dependents

The age of people expected to comply with work requirements has risen steadily over the past three years. Prior to 2023, Kansans over the age of 49 were exempted from work requirements. However, in 2023, the Kansas Legislature passed a bill that extended the requirements to SNAP recipients between the ages of 50 and 59. A month after that bill passed in Kansas, Congress raised the age for the entire country to 54. Now, just two years later, Congress has again increased the age for the entire country, this time to 64.  

With the exemption age increasing, we anticipate more older adults who are unable to work will lose access to SNAP and become food insecure. This is because disabilities among working age adults become more common when people reach the age of 50.  

A disability designation will typically allow an individual to be exempt from work requirements, but it tends to be difficult to receive such a designation. For instance, the average disability applicant waits more than one year for a final decision on their initial claim. But most people are denied on their first attempt and may wait several more years while going through the appeals process. In the meantime, they may become even more unhealthy due to food scarcity.  

Working Age Adults with Dependents between Ages 14 and 18 

Parents with school-aged children have been exempt from SNAP work requirements throughout the history of the program. H.R. 1 breaks that precedent, as parents with kids age 14 and older will now be subject to meeting the 80-hour-per-month work requirement. 

Parents who are unable to work today will still be unable to work when these work requirements kick in on November 1, and many Kansas families will see their food budgets dwindle. These work requirements do nothing to free up parents’ schedules as they take care of sick kids, shuffle kids between appointments and activities, and serve as caretakers for their ailing parents. Those responsibilities will still exist, but now Kansas parents will have even more stress as they try to figure out how to put food on the table.  

Veterans, Youth Aging out of Foster Care, and Individuals Experiencing Homelessness 

Just two years ago, Congress seemed to agree that veterans, young adults aging out of foster care, and people experiencing homelessness were especially vulnerable to food insecurity. During the 2023 debt ceiling debate, exemptions from SNAP work requirements were carved out for these populations and passed with bipartisan consensus.  

H.R. 1 removed those exemptions, and we will likely see food insecurity increase among people who have proudly served our country, former foster care youth under the age of 24, and individuals who have nowhere to go.  

How to Comply with Work Requirements 

If a Kansan falls into one of the above categories, they’ll be required to report 80 hours of work-related activities per month to the Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF), which manages the state’s food assistance program. Those who are already employed 80+ hours per month should contact DCF at 1-888-369-4777 to let them know. There should be no need to report work hours monthly if a recipient is maintaining a schedule of 80 or more hours per month, but confirming with DCF staff is ideal. 

If an individual’s hours ever fall below 80 hours per month, they’ll need to contact DCF to alert them of the change. There are several ways to contact DCF, including through the self-service portal, by mail, by fax, in person, or by phone. However, they’ll be subject to an ABAWD (Able Bodied Adult without Dependents) screening; DCF recommends calling to alert them of the change so the screening can be completed at the same time. 

If not actively employed, a food assistance recipient can fulfill the work requirement by volunteering 80 hours per month or by participating in the Employment and Training Support Services (E&T) offered by DCF.  

Every SNAP recipient is allotted three months of non-compliance for every three-year, fixed period of receiving SNAP food assistance. Once three months of non-compliance (either consecutive or non-consecutive) have been counted during that three-year period, they will lose access to SNAP benefits until the end of that fixed period. The most recent three-year period ended on September 30, 2025. A new period began October 1, 2025, and will end September 30, 2028. This means that any SNAP recipient who is unable to come into compliance within three months will lose access to SNAP benefits until at least October 1, 2028. 

Kansans Losing Access to SNAP 

It’s estimated that 5,500 Kansans are going to be newly subject to this requirement beginning November 1, 2025. Those who do not have the ability to work, such as parents with a mountain of responsibilities and seniors who are not healthy enough to work, are going to be most directly impacted by these changes. We also anticipate some people who are working and fulfilling the requirement will lose their benefits as well due to bureaucratic mistakes, as we have seen when other states have implemented new work requirements.  

Since this is federal policy, Kansas lawmakers do not have the ability to roll back the changes, but they do have the ability to rescind other policies that make it more difficult for Kansans to access food assistance, including the many restrictions the Kansas Legislature created through the passage of the HOPE Act. We encourage Kansas lawmakers to consider any actions that can help Kansans keep food on the table so fewer vulnerable Kansans go hungry.

 

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