Food and Nutrition Act of 2008: SNAP Eligibility and Benefits

The Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 is the federal statute that governs the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). It renamed the old Food Stamp Program, sets who qualifies, controls how monthly benefits are calculated, defines what recipients can buy, imposes work requirements, and lays out the penalties for fraud. The Act is reauthorized as part of the Farm Bill, and its framework still shapes benefits for roughly 40 million Americans.

What the 2008 Act Changed

The most visible change was the name. The law officially replaced “Food Stamp Program” with “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program” to reflect a shift toward nutrition and away from the paper-coupon image the older name carried.¹ By 2008, paper stamps were already gone; every state had switched to Electronic Benefit Transfer cards. The Act built on that by adding nutrition education initiatives and aligning the program’s identity with the EBT system participants were already using.

Who Qualifies for SNAP

Eligibility runs on three tracks: income, assets, and household composition. Federal law defines a household as either one person who lives alone and buys food separately, or a group of people who live together and regularly purchase and prepare meals together.² Everyone in the household is counted for income and benefit calculations.

Income Limits

Households without an elderly or disabled member must pass two tests. Gross monthly income (before deductions) cannot exceed 130 percent of the federal poverty level, and net monthly income (after allowable deductions) cannot exceed 100 percent.³ Households that include someone 60 or older or a person with a disability only have to meet the net income test.

For October 2025 through September 2026, the limits in the 48 contiguous states and D.C. are:

One person: $1,696 gross / $1,305 net per month
Three people: $2,888 gross / $2,221 net per month
Four people: $3,483 gross / $2,680 net per month

Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands use higher thresholds.⁴

Asset Limits

Most households can hold up to $3,000 in countable resources such as cash and bank balances. When at least one member is 60 or older or has a disability, the ceiling rises to $4,500.⁵ A primary home and most retirement accounts do not count.

Broad-Based Categorical Eligibility

A majority of states use Broad-Based Categorical Eligibility, under which receiving even a minor benefit funded by the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program automatically qualifies a household for SNAP under more generous thresholds. Many of these states drop the asset test entirely and raise the gross income ceiling to 200 percent of the poverty level. A smaller group sets the ceiling somewhere between 130 and 185 percent. The net income test still applies.⁶

College Students

Students enrolled at least half-time in higher education are generally ineligible unless they meet a specific exemption. Common exemptions include working at least 20 hours per week, participating in a federal or state work-study program, being a single parent of a child under 12, or caring for a dependent child under 6. Students receiving TANF benefits or assigned to a college program through a workforce training program also qualify.⁷ Meeting an exemption does not waive the normal income and asset rules.

Citizenship and Other Rules

Applicants must be U.S. citizens or have qualifying immigration status and must live in the state where they apply. People convicted of certain drug felonies may face restrictions, though most states have eliminated or scaled back the lifetime ban that federal law originally imposed in 1996. Fleeing felons and people violating parole or probation are generally ineligible.

How Monthly Benefits Are Calculated

Benefits start with the Thrifty Food Plan, a USDA estimate of the cost of a minimal but nutritious diet. That cost becomes the maximum monthly allotment for each household size. The program then subtracts 30 percent of the household’s net income from that maximum, on the theory that families should contribute about three-tenths of their own income toward food.⁸

Maximum monthly allotments for October 2025 through September 2026 in the 48 contiguous states and D.C.:

One person: $298
Two people: $546
Three people: $785
Four people: $994
Eight people: $1,789 (add $224 for each additional person)

A household with zero net income receives the full maximum. As income rises, benefits shrink. One- and two-person households receive a small guaranteed minimum payment even when the formula would otherwise produce a smaller amount.

Deductions That Increase Your Benefit

The deductions used to arrive at net income can make a real difference. For FY2026 they include:

Standard deduction of $209 per month for households of one to three, with higher amounts for larger households.
Earned income deduction excluding 20 percent of all earned income.
Dependent care costs for childcare or care of a disabled household member when needed for work or training.
Medical expenses above $35 per month for elderly or disabled members that insurance does not cover.
Excess shelter costs when housing expenses exceed half the household’s income after other deductions, capped at $744 per month. The cap is removed entirely if anyone in the household is elderly or disabled.
Legally owed child support payments, in states that allow this deduction.

Rent, mortgage payments, property taxes, utilities, and even basic phone service all feed into the shelter calculation, which is where most households pick up the largest additional benefit.⁴

What SNAP Can and Cannot Buy

The statute defines eligible food broadly, then carves out firm exclusions. Benefits can buy any food or food product intended for home consumption, including meat, produce, dairy, bread, cereal, seafood, snack foods, and non-alcoholic beverages. Seeds and plants that produce food for the household are also covered.²

SNAP cannot be used for:

Alcohol and tobacco in any form
Hot prepared foods ready for immediate consumption, such as rotisserie chickens or heated deli items
Non-food items such as cleaning supplies, paper products, pet food, and hygiene products
Vitamins, medicines, and supplements

The hot-food line catches people off guard. A cold deli sandwich is eligible; the same sandwich heated is not.²

The Restaurant Meals Program

A narrow exception exists for people who cannot prepare meals at home. Under the Restaurant Meals Program, certain participants can use their EBT card at authorized restaurants. Every household member must be 60 or older, disabled, homeless, or the spouse of someone who meets one of those criteria. It is a state option and operates only where a state has opted in.⁹

Work Requirements and the ABAWD Time Limit

All non-exempt SNAP recipients between 16 and 59 must register for work, accept suitable job offers, and not voluntarily quit a job without good cause. A stricter rule applies to Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents, or ABAWDs.

Adults between 18 and 54 who are physically able to work and have no dependents can only receive SNAP for three months in any three-year period unless they work or participate in a training program for at least 80 hours per month, roughly 20 hours a week. Qualifying activities include paid employment, volunteer work, a SNAP Employment and Training program, or a combination.¹⁰

Exemptions from the ABAWD time limit cover pregnant individuals, people caring for a child under 14 or an incapacitated person, anyone medically certified as unfit for work, and participants in drug or alcohol treatment. Recent legislation eliminated certain exemptions that previously applied to veterans, former foster youth, and people experiencing homelessness. Veterans with a VA disability rating may still qualify as unfit for work.

Reporting Changes and Overpayment Recovery

SNAP households must report significant changes during their certification period. Most are required to notify the state agency when gross monthly income rises above 130 percent of the poverty level for their household size. Failing to report a required change generates an overpayment that the government will recover.

State agencies have several collection tools. The most common is an automatic reduction of the monthly benefit. For overpayments caused by honest mistakes, the reduction is capped at the greater of $10 or 10 percent of the monthly allotment. When the overpayment resulted from an intentional violation, the reduction becomes the greater of $20 or 20 percent.¹¹

Leaving the program with a balance does not wipe the debt. State agencies must refer delinquent claims older than 180 days to the Treasury Offset Program, which can intercept federal tax refunds and other federal payments. States may also pursue wage garnishment, state tax refund offsets, and collection agency referrals.¹¹

Penalties for Fraud and Trafficking

SNAP fraud splits into administrative disqualification and criminal prosecution, with very different consequences.

Administrative Disqualification

Intentional program violations, such as lying on an application or hiding income to raise benefits, trigger escalating bans:

First violation: 12 months
Second violation: 24 months
Third violation: permanent

Some offenses carry harsher penalties. Trafficking benefits worth $500 or more, or using SNAP proceeds to buy firearms or controlled substances, can bring permanent disqualification on the first offense.¹²

Criminal Penalties

Federal law scales criminal penalties by the dollar value of the fraud. Trafficking or misusing benefits worth $5,000 or more is a felony with up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. For amounts between $100 and $5,000, the maximum drops to five years and a $10,000 fine on a first conviction. Fraud involving less than $100 is a misdemeanor with up to one year in prison and a $1,000 fine.¹³ Retailers caught exchanging SNAP benefits for cash face store disqualification on top of criminal prosecution.¹⁴

Federal and State Administration

SNAP runs as a federal-state partnership. The USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service sets the rules, funds the full cost of benefits, and authorizes retailers. State agencies handle applications, interviews, eligibility verification, EBT card issuance, and employment and training programs.¹⁵ Participants who disagree with an eligibility or benefit decision are entitled to a fair hearing.

The federal government currently reimburses states for 50 percent of their administrative costs. That share is scheduled to drop to 25 percent starting in fiscal year 2027.¹⁶ EBT cards work at any authorized retailer nationwide, so benefits are portable even though the program is administered locally.

Disaster SNAP

When a major disaster strikes, the USDA can authorize a temporary Disaster SNAP program (D-SNAP) in affected areas. Activation requires a presidential disaster declaration that includes Individual Assistance from FEMA. Once approved, the state opens a short application window, typically seven days, during which households that would not normally qualify can apply for one month of emergency food benefits. Existing SNAP households in the disaster area may receive supplemental benefits to replace food lost during the disaster.¹⁷

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 7 USC 2011 – Congressional Declaration of Policy
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 7 USC 2012 – Definitions
3
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 7 USC 2014 – Eligible Households
4
Food and Nutrition Service. SNAP Eligibility
5
Food and Nutrition Service. SNAP Special Rules for the Elderly or Disabled
6
Food and Nutrition Service. Broad-Based Categorical Eligibility (BBCE)
7
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 7 USC 2015 – Eligibility Disqualifications
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 7 USC 2017 – Value of Allotment
9
Food and Nutrition Service. SNAP Restaurant Meals Program
10
Food and Nutrition Service. SNAP Work Requirements
11
eCFR. 7 CFR 273.18 – Claims Against Households
12
eCFR. 7 CFR 273.16 – Disqualification for Intentional Program Violation
13
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 7 USC 2024 – Violations and Enforcement
14
Food and Nutrition Service. SNAP Fraud Prevention
15
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 7 USC 2020 – Administration
16
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 7 USC 2025 – Administrative Cost-Sharing and Quality Control
17
USDA Food and Nutrition Service. Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP)