SNAP Waived Areas in Kentucky

Waived areas in Kentucky

Current waiver: December 1, 2025 to November 30, 2026 (USDA letter dated February 9, 2026). 5 areas:

Counties

• Elliott County (10.6% unemployment)
• Lewis County (10.8% unemployment)
• Magoffin County (10.9% unemployment)
• Martin County (10.6% unemployment)
• Wolfe County (11.8% unemployment)

How these areas qualified: Each county had a three-month average unemployment rate over 10% for January to March 2025.

What the waiver means if you live there

• The 3-month time limit does not apply while the waiver is in effect. Months you get SNAP while living in a waived area do not count toward your 3 months, even if you do not work 80 hours.
• It depends on where you live, not where you work. If you live outside the listed areas, the time limit applies to you even if your job or training is inside one.
• The general work rules still apply. A waiver does not cover them. If you are 16 to 59 and not excused, you must still register for work, accept a suitable job offer, not quit a job or cut your hours without good cause, and take part in a job program if your state refers you.
• Your state keeps counting the calendar. USDA tells states to keep tracking the 36-month period even in waived areas so they can restart the time limit when the waiver ends.
• Some people are exempt anywhere. American Indian, Alaska Native, Urban Indian and California Indian people, and anyone with another exemption, are not subject to the time limit wherever they live.

When the waiver ends

The approval ends November 30, 2026. As of October 31, 2026, USDA had not posted a Kentucky request or approval for a new waiver. If none is approved, the time limit can apply in these five counties from December 2026, as it already does in Kentucky’s other 115 counties.

When a waiver ends, months before it ended still do not count. Starting the month after, any full month you get SNAP without meeting the 80-hour rule or an exemption counts toward your 3 months in the current 36-month period. Your state should send you a notice first. To keep benefits, work, volunteer or train 80 hours a month, or check whether an exemption fits you.

Check your own situation

Check if the time limit applies to you Count your months

For start dates, your 36-month period and how to report hours in Kentucky, see SNAP work requirements in Kentucky. For every state’s list, see all SNAP waived areas.