Who Can Be a Separate Household

The household situation must be confirmed before determining if the household can be considered a separate household. The following defines household composition. A. An Individual living alone,

B. An Individual living with others, BUT customarily purchasing food and preparing meals for home consumption separate and apart from others (considered a separate household) or

C. A group of individuals who live together and customarily purchase food and prepare meals together for home consumption (considered one household).

Households living and purchasing and preparing food with another household, who would otherwise qualify as a separate household, may file an application as a separate household if their intention is to purchase their own food separately from the other household after they are approved for SNAP.

A permanently disabled household member who is unable to purchase and prepare food. For the person to be considered a separate household, the two conditions below must be met:

The disability must be verified by a physician or licensed psychologist. They do not have to qualify as a disabled person under policy 254 .

The countable gross income of the other people is not more than the limit listed on Table 2 (165 percent of net monthly income) for the household size.

The income of the disabled person and his or her spouse is not counted in the 165 percent net income test.

Neither the disabled person nor his/her spouse is included as household members when comparing gross income to Table 2 .

The income of the other household members is considered as if they were applying for SNAP. It does not matter if they qualify for SNAP.

If a disabled child, age 21 and younger, lives with their parents, their parents must be included in their SNAP household.

If other members of the household want separate SNAP benefits, they may be considered as a separate household as long as the disabled members meet all SNAP eligibility criteria even if they are not receiving SNAP.