SNAP Work Requirements in Michigan
In Michigan, SNAP is called Food Assistance Program. Here is when Michigan 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. Michigan 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 Michigan
Michigan calls the time limit "Time Limited Food Assistance." We could not load MDHHS's work requirements page to confirm its dates. Check that page or ask your caseworker.
Waived areas in Michigan
USDA approved a waiver from November 1, 2025 to October 31, 2026 for 15 counties, 6 cities and 8 reservation areas. As of October 30, 2026 no renewal had been posted by USDA, so ask MDHHS whether your area is still waived after October 31, 2026.
- Alcona, Alger, Arenac, Cheboygan, Iosco, Iron, Luce, Mackinac, Montmorency, Oceana, Ogemaw, Oscoda, Presque Isle, Roscommon and Schoolcraft counties
- The cities of Bay City, Detroit, Eastpointe, Flint, Jackson and Saginaw
- Bay Mills, Grand Traverse, Hannahville, Huron Potawatomi, Little River, Little Traverse Bay, Pokagon and Sault Ste. Marie reservation areas
If you live in a waived area, months there do not count toward your 3-month limit. Your state still keeps track, so the limit can apply again when the waiver ends. Waivers can end early, so confirm with your SNAP office.
Your 36-month period
We could not verify how Michigan sets the 36-month period.
You can get Food Assistance Program 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: Food Assistance Employment and Training (FAE&T) through Michigan Works!
Ask MDHHS or your local Michigan Works! office how to report your hours.
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.
Contact
- Agency: Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS)
- Online account: MI Bridges
- Phone: we could not verify a statewide SNAP number on an official page. Use the agency link above or the USDA state directory to find your local office.
Federal rules that apply in Michigan
- 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 Michigan in 2026?
Yes. The federal time limit applies to Food Assistance Program recipients aged 18 to 64 who are not exempt. Michigan has not published an exact start date that we could verify. Some areas are waived.
How do I report my 80 hours in Michigan?
Ask MDHHS or your local Michigan Works! office how to report your hours.
When does the 36-month period reset in Michigan?
We could not verify how Michigan sets the 36-month period.
Which areas of Michigan are waived from the SNAP time limit?
Alcona, Alger, Arenac, Cheboygan, Iosco, Iron, Luce, Mackinac, Montmorency, Oceana, Ogemaw, Oscoda, Presque Isle, Roscommon and Schoolcraft counties; The cities of Bay City, Detroit, Eastpointe, Flint, Jackson and Saginaw; Bay Mills, Grand Traverse, Hannahville, Huron Potawatomi, Little River, Little Traverse Bay, Pokagon and Sault Ste. Marie reservation areas. USDA’s approval runs through October 31, 2026.