Excluded Retirement Accounts

The Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, as amended, limits the amount of resources that a household may have and still receive SNAP benefits. Resources can include, but are not limited to, cash and funds in checking or savings accounts.

Many retirement accounts are excluded from consideration as a resource. In 2017, FNS released updated guidance to state agencies on the treatment of retirement accounts in determining SNAP eligibility. If a retirement account is included in the table attached below, the account is excluded as a resource in determining a household’s eligibility.