Elderly & Disabled Simplified Application Project (ESAP)
The Elderly and Disabled Simplified Application Project (ESAP) simplifies the application process and allows for a longer eligibility period for SNAP applicants and households that meet the following criteria:
- All members of the household are age 60 or older, are disabled* regardless of age, or are a combination of both
- No household members have income from working
*A person with a disability is anyone determined to be disabled by the Social Security Administration and most likely receiving a federally related disability benefit including, but not limited to:
- Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
- Social Security Disability (SSD)
- Disability-related Medicaid
- Veterans Administration (VA) Disability 100%
Households meeting the ESAP criteria benefit from:
- A longer, 3-year certification period instead of the previous 2-year certification period assigned to such households;
- No recertification interview requirement after the 3-year certification period ends unless the household’s case will be closed, the household requests an interview, or information on the recertification form is questionable and further clarification is needed.;
- Less requests for documentation if DHS can verify the household’s information through data matches;
- A shorter application.
Note: ESAP-eligible households must submit a completed recertification application and any required documents to continue to receive SNAP benefits. ESAP-eligible households who do not return a recertification application will have their SNAP case closed for failure to recertify, like any other SNAP case.
New applications for SNAP are being reviewed and those meeting the ESAP criteria will be placed into ESAP. They will receive a notice that includes the benefits of ESAP and the extension of the certification period.
Households already receiving SNAP and meeting ESAP criteria will be placed into ESAP automatically or at their next recertification if their recertification form is currently due.
The shortened ESAP paper application can be found here:
This page will be updated periodically with ESAP related materials. Please visit this page frequently for ESAP updates.