SNAP Work Requirements in Hawaii
Here is when Hawaii started the 2025 time limit rules for adults 18 to 64, which areas are waived, how your 36 months are counted, and how to report your hours.
Check if the time limit applies to you Count your months
Limited official information. Hawaii has published little about how it applies these rules, or its pages could not be checked. This page sticks to what we could verify plus the federal rules that apply everywhere. Ask your SNAP office for anything not listed here.
When the new rules started in Hawaii
Hawaii DHS announced that the work rule changes would take effect November 1, 2025. Its FAQ tells members to be ready to answer questions about the new rules at their application or recertification interview.
Waived areas in Hawaii
No part of Hawaii is waived. H.R. 1 lets Hawaii ask for waivers in areas with unemployment at least 1.5 times the national rate, but no approval is listed.
That means the time limit can apply anywhere in the state to adults who are not exempt and do not meet the 80-hour rule.
Your 36-month period
DHS has not published how it sets the 36-month period.
You can get SNAP for only 3 countable months in that period unless you meet the 80-hour rule or are exempt. The time limit calculator helps you count.
How to meet and report the 80 hours
Job and training program: SNAP Employment and Training (E&T)
E&T is voluntary and can help you meet the rule. Volunteering must be with a government or nonprofit group, not a for-profit business. To report hours or ask about an exemption, call the information line and ask for an Eligibility Worker. E&T partners include Goodwill Hawaii (Oahu 808-792-8564, Maui 808-442-8908) and DLIR (Hilo 808-981-4540, Kona 808-327-4762, Kauai 808-241-3673).
Across all states, paid work, work for goods or services, volunteering, workfare and approved training count, and you can combine them. See what counts as work.
More Hawaii details
- DHS says Native Hawaiians are not covered by the new American Indian / Urban Indian / California Indian exemption.
- Free interpreter services: 1-888-764-7586.
Contact
- Agency: Hawaii Department of Human Services (DHS), Benefit, Employment & Support Services Division
- Online account: DHS online application (PAIS)
- Phone: 1-855-643-1643 (Public Assistance Information Line)
Federal rules that apply in Hawaii
- Covered: adults 18 through 64 who can work, with no child under 14 in their SNAP household.
- Exempt: pregnancy; a health condition that keeps you from working; American Indian, Alaska Native, Urban Indian or California Indian; or being excused from the general work rules (caring for a child under 6 or a disabled person, unemployment benefits, 30 hours a week or $217.50 a week, half-time school, drug or alcohol treatment, TANF work rules). See all exemptions.
- Veterans, people experiencing homelessness, and former foster youth are no longer automatically exempt.
- If you lose SNAP, you can get it back by doing 80 hours in 30 days or becoming exempt. You can also ask for a fair hearing. See how to get SNAP back.
Frequently asked questions
Do SNAP work requirements apply in Hawaii in 2026?
Yes. The federal time limit applies to SNAP recipients aged 18 to 64 who are not exempt. Hawaii’s new rules started Nov. 1, 2025. No part of the state is waived.
How do I report my 80 hours in Hawaii?
E&T is voluntary and can help you meet the rule. Volunteering must be with a government or nonprofit group, not a for-profit business. To report hours or ask about an exemption, call the information line and ask for an Eligibility Worker. E&T partners include Goodwill Hawaii (Oahu 808-792-8564, Maui 808-442-8908) and DLIR (Hilo 808-981-4540, Kona 808-327-4762, Kauai 808-241-3673).
When does the 36-month period reset in Hawaii?
DHS has not published how it sets the 36-month period.