Section 17(b) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, as amended (the Act), allows us to waive statutory requirements of the Act to conduct pilot projects designed to test program changes to increase the efficiency of SNAP and improve the delivery of benefits to eligible households.
Waiver Database
Welcome to the SNAP Certification Policy Waiver Database. This waiver database was designed to help you find the information you need quickly in a friendly format. SNAP regulations provide that waivers may be approved under certain conditions, including when approval of a waiver would result in a more effective and efficient administration of the program.
The files linked below list all active SNAP certification and state administration waivers.
- Current Certification Waivers (as of 03/31/25)
- State Administration Waivers (as of 05/12/25)
State EBT and Retailer Waivers
SNAP Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) waivers are approved for state agencies for EBT operations during the length of their state EBT contract. States have the option to request the waivers to allow for flexibility in their EBT system operations and meet contractual requirements. Retailer waivers are also approved to provide additional flexibility to retailers to serve SNAP customers, including the healthy incentives waiver.
- Current State EBT and Retailer Waivers (as of 09/28/23)
Food Restriction Waivers
USDA is empowering states with greater flexibility to manage their programs by approving SNAP Food Restriction Waivers that restrict the purchase of non-nutritious items like soda and candy. By amending the definition of eligible food and food products, SNAP food restriction demonstration projects are intended to test innovative ideas that develop and implement modernized programmatic systems, infuse SNAP with new energy and vision, and strengthen state strategies to encourage healthy choices, healthy outcomes, and healthy families.
ABAWD Waivers
Able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWDs) can receive SNAP for only three months in a 3-year period if they do not meet certain work requirements. This is called the ABAWD time limit. The Food and Nutrition Act allows states to ask us to temporarily waive the ABAWD time limit for areas that have an unemployment rate of over 10 percent or does not have a sufficient number of jobs. An ABAWD time limit waiver does not waive the general SNAP work requirements.