Texas SNAP Work Rules: ABAWD Limits, Exemptions & Appeals

If you get SNAP in Texas and you’re between 16 and 59, you have to meet federal work requirements to keep your benefits, and a stricter 80-hour-per-month rule applies to able-bodied adults without dependents up to age 64. The Texas SNAP work requirements break into two layers: a baseline set of obligations for most working-age recipients, and a harsher time limit for adults the government considers able to work and not caring for anyone. Falling out of compliance can cost you one month of benefits, six months, or in some cases a permanent ban.

The Baseline Rules for Ages 16 to 59

Anyone younger than 16 or 60 and older is outside the work rules entirely.¹ Everyone in between who receives SNAP in Texas has to do three things: register for work, accept a suitable job if one is offered, and participate in a SNAP Employment and Training program if the state assigns you to one. If you also get TANF or workfare benefits, you have to participate in those work activities too.²

Two prohibitions catch people more than any others. You cannot voluntarily quit a job of 30 or more hours per week without good cause, and you cannot cut your hours below 30 per week without a legitimate reason. Good cause covers things like workplace discrimination, unsafe or unreasonable conditions, and lack of transportation.³

The ABAWD 80-Hour Rule and Three-Month Limit

A separate and much tougher rule applies to able-bodied adults without dependents, known as ABAWDs. If that’s you, SNAP will cover you for only three months out of any three-year period unless you meet an additional work threshold. To stay on benefits past those three months, you need at least 80 hours of qualifying activity per month. That can be paid work, self-employment, unpaid work, a Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act program, or any mix that adds up to 80.⁴

Every month you receive SNAP without hitting 80 hours burns one of your three months. There’s no warning before the clock starts; it begins the first qualifying month. Once the three months are gone, benefits stop regardless of how much money you have.

What Changed in 2025

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025 reshaped the ABAWD rules, and the changes are being implemented now. The upper age for the time limit rose from 54 to 64. Turning 55 used to free you from it; that’s no longer true. The Texas Workforce Commission’s SNAP Employment and Training program already reflects the new ceiling and covers participants up to age 64.⁵

The law also eliminated exemptions added in 2023 for veterans, people experiencing homelessness, and young adults who aged out of foster care. Those groups now have to meet the same 80-hour monthly requirement as everyone else. The USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service has said more implementation guidance is still coming, so details may continue to shift.³

Who Is Exempt

Texas follows the federal exemption list. If any of these apply to you, raise it when you apply or recertify rather than waiting for the state to spot it:⁶

A physical or mental health condition that keeps you from working.
Caring for a child under six or a person who can’t care for themselves.
Pregnancy.
Already working at least 30 hours a week, or earning the weekly equivalent of 30 hours at the federal minimum wage ($7.25 per hour, or $217.50 a week).
Enrollment at least half-time in school or a training program (separate eligibility rules apply to college students).
Regular participation in a drug or alcohol treatment program.

The exemptions for the general work rules and the ABAWD time limit overlap but aren’t identical. Pregnancy, for example, specifically exempts you from the ABAWD time limit.³

What Happens If You Don’t Comply

Missing the general work rules without good cause triggers escalating disqualifications under Texas law:⁷

First violation: at least one month, or until you comply, whichever is longer.
Second violation: at least three months.
Third or subsequent violation: at least six months.

One detail catches households off guard. If the noncompliant person is the household’s primary wage earner, the whole household loses benefits. If a non-primary earner is the one out of compliance, only that individual is disqualified and everyone else keeps their benefits.⁷

Waiting out the clock isn’t enough. For these penalties, you must actually start complying with the requirement you missed before the disqualification period ends.

Intentional Misrepresentation

Deliberately lying about your work status is treated as an intentional program violation and carries a separate, much steeper schedule:⁸

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

Trafficking an EBT card or collecting benefits under a fake identity can draw a permanent ban on the first offense. Only the individual who committed the violation is disqualified; the rest of the household stays eligible, but the benefit amount is recalculated without that member.⁸

Getting Back on SNAP After Losing Benefits

If your three ABAWD months are gone, you can regain eligibility by working, volunteering, or participating in an approved training program for at least 80 hours in any consecutive 30-day period, then reapplying.⁹ You can also regain eligibility by becoming exempt, for instance through pregnancy, a new medical condition, or taking on care of someone who can’t care for themselves.

There’s one safety net worth knowing. After regaining eligibility and then failing the work requirement again, you can receive up to three additional consecutive months of benefits. That extra window is available only once per 36-month period.⁹ After it’s used, missing the threshold again means an immediate cutoff until you complete another qualifying 30 days.

Proving Your Hours and Exemptions

The practical burden lands on documentation. Pay stubs showing hours worked and gross wages are the simplest proof of employment. If your employer doesn’t provide standard stubs, Form H1822 can verify participation in an approved workforce program such as WIOA or SNAP E&T. That form is completed by local Workforce Solutions staff, not by your employer.¹⁰

For a medical exemption, you’ll need a statement from a healthcare provider describing the condition that prevents you from working. Physicians, nurse practitioners, psychologists, and licensed counselors are commonly accepted. Line this up early; waiting until the state asks often means delays that push you past a recertification deadline. Your Texas Benefits is the primary portal for managing your case, and Form H1010, the Texas Works Application, is used for reapplying or updating your situation.

Appealing a Work Rule Disqualification

If HHSC disqualifies you and you believe the decision was wrong, because you had good cause, qualified for an exemption, or the agency made an error, you can request a fair hearing. Texas gives you 90 days from the date on the notice or the effective date of the action, whichever is later, to file. The request can be made in writing or orally.¹¹

Depending on the program and when you file, you may be able to keep receiving benefits while the hearing is pending.¹² Speed matters. File as soon as the adverse notice arrives, and specifically ask for continued benefits in the request; once your benefits have already been cut, getting them restored during the appeal becomes harder.

1
eCFR. 7 CFR 273.7 – Work Provisions
2
Cornell Law Institute. Texas Administrative Code 1-372.1351 – SNAP Work Requirements
3
Food and Nutrition Service. SNAP Work Requirements
4
eCFR. 7 CFR 273.24 – Time Limit for Able-Bodied Adults
5
Texas Workforce Commission. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Employment and Training
6
Texas Health and Human Services. SNAP Work Rules
7
Cornell Law Institute. Texas Administrative Code 1-372.1352 – Consequence for Noncompliance with SNAP Work Requirements
8
eCFR. 7 CFR 273.16 – Disqualification for Intentional Program Violation
9
Food and Nutrition Service. The Impact of SNAP Able Bodied Adults Without Dependents
10
Texas Health and Human Services Commission. Form H1822 – ABAWD Employment and Training Work Requirement Verification
11
Cornell Law Institute. Texas Administrative Code 1-357.3 – Authority and Right to Appeal
12
Texas Health and Human Services. Fair and Fraud Hearings Frequently Asked Questions