Unless you meet special work rules, healthy childless adults between the ages of 18 and 50 can get only up to three months of food stamps in 36 months. This document describes how to get more benefits and how you can get benefits back if they were wrongly stopped.

To get more benefits, you must work at least half-time or take part in a job training program. You can meet the work requirement with at least 20 hours per week of:

• Work for pay
• Work for free or low-cost housing or other in-kind benefits or
• Unpaid community service for a program doing public service in such fields as health, social service and day care. Many churches have programs that meet this requirement.

You can continue getting food stamps without meeting the work requirements if:

• You get disability benefits from Social Security or SSI
• You have a doctor's statement or other medical proof of disability
• You take care of a child under 19 or a disabled person in your home
• You are exempt because:
• You participate in JOBS
• You are looking for work through Unemployment Compensation
• You care for an incapacitated person
• You are a student (at least half time)
• You take part in an alcohol or drug treatment program or
• You move out of the counties covered by these rules. The counties are Etowah, Houston, Jefferson, Limestone, Madison, Mobile, Montgomery, Morgan and Tuscaloosa.
• Your food stamp worker gives you an exemption: Since 2004, food stamp workers have been giving a special exemption to all healthy people between 18 and 50. So, all of them can get food stamps.