ABAWD Time Limits and Work Requirements
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This subject includes information about NA Able Bodied Adult Without Dependents (ABAWD) time limits and work requirements.
Policy
The Able Bodied Adult Without Dependents(g) is an NA benefit time limit of three full months of NA benefits. When an NA participant does not qualify for an exemption or meets a work requirement and receives the three countable months, the participant is ineligible..
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ABAWD Time Limits
The Able Bodied Adult Without Dependents (ABAWD) time limit applies to NA participants who do not meet any of the following:
●An NA work requirement exemption. (See NA Work Requirements for more information about the work requirement exemptions that are applicable to the ABAWD time limit.)
●An ABAWD exemption.
●An ABAWD work requirement.
These participants are limited to three full months of NA benefits in a fixed three-year period. In Arizona, the ABAWD three-year period is the same three years for all NA budgetary units. The current three-year period began on 01/01/2025 and ends on 12/31/2027. (See Example 1)
NA benefit months received in other states count toward the ABAWD time limit when all of the following apply:
●When received from another state with an ABAWD time limit.
●When the benefits are received during the current three-year period in Arizona.
Benefit months count towards the three-month time limit when an NA participant does not meet an NA work requirement, ABAWD exemption, or ABAWD work requirement.
An ABAWD participant may receive more than three months of NA benefits during a three-year period when the participant meets any of the following:
●An NA work requirement exemption.
●An ABAWD exemption.
●The ABAWD work requirements.
When an NA ABAWD participant does not meet an exemption or a work requirement, all of the following apply:
●The participant is subject to the ABAWD time limit.
●Each full month of benefits received counts toward the ABAWD time limit.
NOTE When benefits are prorated in a month, the month does not count toward the ABAWD three-month limit.
When the three-year period ends, the ABAWD countable months are reset to zero, starting in the first month of the new three-year period.
When a participant subject to the ABAWD time limits is receiving NA benefits and reaches the three-month limit, one of the following occurs:
●When the participant is the only member of the case, all of the following apply:
The case is closed.
A notice is mailed to the budgetary unit explaining the ABAWD time limit was reached and how to qualify for additional NA benefits.
●When the participant is included in a budgetary unit with other non-ABAWD participants, all of the following apply:
The participant is disqualified.
A notice is mailed to the budgetary unit explaining who has reached the ABAWD time limit and how that participant may qualify for additional NA benefits. The notice includes details on the change to the NA benefit amount due to the disqualification.
NOTE When a participant receives more than three countable months of NA benefits without meeting an ABAWD work requirement or an exemption, the participant’s case is referred for a potential overpayment.
The ABAWD time limit does not apply to participants who meet any of the following exemptions:
●Under 18 years of age.
●65 years of age or older.
●Medically certified as mentally or physically unfit for work.
●Parents or other budgetary unit members who are responsible for a dependent child under age 14.
NOTE This exemption applies through, and including, the month in which the dependent child turns 14.
●Pregnant.
●Indians, Urban Indians, or California Indians as defined by the Indian Health Care Improvement Act(g).
●An NA Work Requirement Exemption. (See NA Work Requirement Exemptions for additional exemptions.)
(For more detailed information about exemptions, see ABAWD Exemptions.)
ABAWD Work Requirements
NA participants subject to the ABAWD time limit are required to meet an ABAWD work requirement to receive NA benefits beyond the three-month time limit. An ABAWD participant can meet the work requirement by doing any of the following:
●Working at least 20 hours per week (or an average of 80 hours per month). The hours can be met by any combination of any of the following:
Self-employment
Paid work
In-kind work
Volunteer unpaid work
●Participating in and complying with one of the following work programs at least 20 hours per week:
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Career Advancement Network (SNAP CAN) program.
NOTE The program may contain job search or job search training as a subsidiary component when the component is less than half of the required 20 hours per week.
Workforce Investment Opportunities Act (WIOA) Program or any component of WIOA.
Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) Act.
An employment and training program for veterans offered by one of the following:
●Department of Labor.
●Department of Veterans Affairs.
NOTE Several work programs are available through DES based on a participant's circumstances. See Workforce Development, Rehabilitation Services, and Unemployment Insurance Programs for more information.
●Any combination of working and participating in a work program for at least 20 hours per week.
All ABAWD participants who are exempt or meet the ABAWD work requirements can participate in the SNAP CAN program. A referral from FAA is required for an NA participant to receive employment and training services from SNAP CAN. See SNAP CAN for more information.
ABAWD Reporting Requirements
NA budgetary units with ABAWD participants are assigned to Simplified Reporting requirements. Budgetary units are required to report when the work hours of the ABAWD participant drop below 20 per week or an average of 80 per month.
After benefits are approved, ABAWD participants are required to report changes in hours used to meet an ABAWD work requirement with all of the following guidelines:
●No later than the tenth calendar day(g) of the month after the month the change occurred.
●When the reporting deadline falls on a weekend or holiday, the reporting due date is extended to the following workday(g).
An ABAWD participant has to provide a good cause reason to FAA for missing the required hours for the ABAWD work requirement.
When good cause is established and the reduction in work participation hours is temporary, the full benefit month does not count towards the ABAWD time limit.
When an ABAWD participant fails to report a reduction in work hours, the FAA staff completes a potential overpayment referral for NA ABAWD participants who exceed the ABAWD time limit of three countable full months.
When a participant’s work status or exemption status changes, the participant can report the change by submitting an Able Bodied Adult Without Dependents (ABAWD) Time Limits (FAA-1530A) form. The FAA-1530A form is available for download from the DES Website in the Document Center (See How to Report a Change for details on methods that are available to participants to submit a change report to FAA.)
ABAWD Good Cause
An ABAWD participant who misses some hours with good cause meets an ABAWD work requirement when the absence from work or a work program is temporary. An ABAWD participant is determined to have good cause for not meeting the ABAWD work requirements when the circumstances are beyond the control of the participant. Good cause for not meeting an ABAWD work requirement could include, and is not limited to, any of the following:
●Illness.
●Illness of other household members, requiring the presence of the participant.
●Household emergency.
●Unavailability of transportation.
(For additional good cause reasons, see NA Work Requirements Good Cause Reasons.)
For the benefit month that the ABAWD participant did not meet the ABAWD work requirements, the full month of NA benefits does not count towards the three countable months for the ABAWD benefit time limit when all of the following apply:
●The participant reported the change timely.
●The participant provided a good cause reason.
●The good cause reason is temporary and the ABAWD participant returns to meeting the ABAWD work requirement in the following month.
When the reason for the reduction in hours is not temporary, the ABAWD participant needs to meet one of the following to receive more than three countable full months of benefits:
●An ABAWD work requirement.
●An NA work requirement exemption.
●An ABAWD exemption.
Screening for NA Work Responsibilities
During the interview, FAA screens each NA participant included in the NA benefits for the participant’s work responsibilities and explains how the NA work responsibilities apply to each of the participants in the budgetary unit. Along with the information in this reference, see all of the following NA work responsibilities for complete information:
●ABAWD Exemptions for information about how an NA participant can be exempt from the Able Bodied Adults without Dependents (ABAWD) time limit of three months of benefits.
●ABAWD Continued Eligibility for information about how a participant can regain eligibility for NA benefits after receiving the ABAWD time limit of three months of benefits.
●NA Work Requirements for information on what the work requirements are and who is exempt from them.
●Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Career Advancement Network (SNAP CAN) for information about the voluntary program for NA participants ages 16 and older to gain job skills and employment, as well as financial assistance for participating in SNAP CAN.
●Work Requirement Disqualifications for information about what causes ineligibility due to a disqualification.
Verification
The participant has the primary responsibility for providing verification. (See Participant Responsibilities – Providing Verification for additional policy.)
Acceptable verification of the ABAWD work requirement, includes and is not limited, to all of the following:
●A written statement or collateral contact completed by the work program or organization for which the work is being done.
●Paycheck stubs.
Verify the ABAWD good cause reason when questionable.
Verify the ABAWD exemption when questionable. For more information on verification, see ABAWD Exemptions.
Examples
1) The ABAWD three-year period runs from 01/01/2025 through 12/31/2027 (three years). Jack, an ABAWD participant, applies for NA on 01/10/2025. Jill, another ABAWD participant, applies for NA on 12/16/2027. The three-year period is the same for each of them and restarts on 01/01/2028.
Legal Authorities
7 CFR 273.24(a)
7 CFR 273.24(b)
7 CFR 273.24(f)
FNS Waiver
HR 1
last revised 05/18/2026