How Many Hours Are You Working
Another aspect to consider is whether or not youre working full-time or part-time.
How much you work affects your income. Youre more likely to be over SGA if youre working full-time than if youre working part-time.
However, how much youre working affects your claim beyond your income level. It also tells Social Security something about your disabling condition.
Some Dorms Of Income Are Not Included In These Limits
These differ slightly from SSDI to SSI. In regards to SSDI, most forms of income that are not made directly from work wages or under-the-table work are not included in substantial gainful activity. This includes investments, interest, a spouses income, or other assets.
When referring to SSI, it gets a bit trickier. Some assets and interest may count towards the monthly total while others may not. However, income from a spouse does affect the limit for SGA couples have an income limit of $1,103/month.
Even if you may have substantial gainful activity, you can still apply for SSDI/SSI.
Situations vary greatly from person to person. Depending on the nature of your disability and the nature of your income, you may still qualify for SSDI or SSI. Do not let these numbers prevent you from applying altogether it is always better to apply and not qualify than not apply at all.
What Other Requirements Are Beneficiaries Required To Meet
In order to receive Disability Insurance, a worker must have worked during at least one-fourth of his or her adult lifetime and during at least 5 of the 10 years before disability onset. There is also a five-month waiting period before a worker can qualify for benefits.
Supplemental Security provides assistance to people with severe disabilities who have very low incomes and assets and who either lack sufficient work history to be covered for Disability Insurance or receive only a very small Disability Insurance benefit. It is important to note that many Supplemental Security beneficiaries, although lacking the sustained work history necessary to be insured under Disability Insurance, have worked and paid into the Disability Insurance system. And others, particularly women, are not eligible for Disability Insurance because they took time out of the paid labor force to care for children or other family members.
Workers must apply for and exhaust all other available benefits before qualifying for Disability Insurance or Supplemental Security. Accordingly, Social Securitys disability programs serve as a true last resort for people with severe disabilities and little to no ability to work.
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Why Ssdi Requires Work Credits
As the acronym indicates, SSDI is an insurance program. You pay the premiums of this program through the Social Security deductions that your boss takes out of your paycheck and sends to the government on your behalf. That money helps to fund the monthly Social Security disability and retirement checks that people receive.
On the other hand, the source of funding for SSI benefits is general revenues, like income taxes and additional money that the government collects. Because SSI does not use payroll deductions for Social Security taxes as its source of funding, you do not have to pay into the system and accumulate work credits to be eligible for these benefits.
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Workers Who Die Before Age 62
The minimum age to start claiming Social Security retirement benefits is 62. If someone dies prematurely, then dependent children and spouses may be entitled to survivor benefits. At age 60, for example, widows and widowers can begin receiving Social Security benefits based on their deceased spouses earnings record . Terminally ill patients can apply for Social Security Disability Insurance , which means they will still receive some benefit from their contributions to the system.
What if you are terminally ill and have reached the minimum retirement age? If you are single, claiming right away may be the most sensible strategy. However, if you have a spouse, postponing may provide your spouse with greater benefits. The spousal benefit can be as much as 50% of the worker’s benefit, depending on the spouse’s age at retirement and if the spouse is eligible for retirement benefits based on their own earnings record. The Social Security Administration has an online calculator that helps determine benefits for spouses.
If you do not qualify for Social Security payments, then you will need to ensure that you have sufficient income to support your lifestyle in retirement.
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How Common Is It For Beneficiaries To Return To Work
Both Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security provide incentives for beneficiaries to work. Disability Insurance beneficiaries are encouraged to work up to their full capacity and can earn an unlimited amount for up to 12 months without losing any benefits. Beneficiaries who work for more than 12 months and have earnings above the substantial gainful activity level cease to receive a monthly benefit. If at any point in the next five years their condition worsens and they are not able to continue working above the substantial gainful activity level, however, they are eligible for expedited reinstatement of their benefits. This means they do not need to repeat the entire, and typically lengthy, disability-determination process that they initially went through to qualify for benefits.
Supplemental Security beneficiaries who are able to work are encouraged to do so as well. Their benefits are reduced based on their earningsafter the first $85 of earnings each month, which is not counted against the benefitbut by only $1 for every $2 of earnings. Beneficiaries who are able to do some work will therefore always be better off with both earnings and a reduced benefit than just the benefit alone.
So Can You Work While Applying For Social Security Disability Benefits
Maybe. Theres a lot to consider. An Indiana disability attorney can help you determine how working may affect your disability claim.
They can also give you other options for financial assistance if youre struggling to make ends meet while waiting to get approved for benefits.
Ultimately, youre almost always going to make more money by working than you will by getting approved for disability benefits. Social Security disability benefits exist to help those who cannot work or cannot work enough to support themselves due to their disability.
If you can still work, no matter how many hours, its still a good idea to keep working, keep treating, and hopefully stay in the workforce as long as possible.
But when you can no longer work or can no longer support yourself, Hensley Legal Group is here to help.
Our disability attorneys can help you at any stage of the application process. Give us a call at 472-3333, or contact us online for a free conversation about your disability claim.
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Title Ii Disability Benefits
This article discusses how work can affect a personâs eligibility for Title II disability benefits, commonly referred to as âSocial Security Disability.â The next Voice article will discuss preserving Medicare and Medicaid benefits when a Title II disability recipient begins to work.
Title II of the Social Security Act provides three types of insurance benefits for individuals with disabilities. Some people receive Title II disability benefits on their own work history . Others receive Title II disability insurance on the account of a deceased spouse or former spouse s Benefits or DWB). Some adult children receive Title II disability benefits on the account of a disabled, retired or deceased parent . In order for a worker, spouse, or child to qualify for Title II disability benefits, the worker on whose account benefits are paid must have paid Social Security taxes on earnings and must have earned the requisite number of work credits. Title II disability benefits are a type of insurance and are not affected by a personâs assets or unearned income.
An Extra Consideration For Ssi
Keep in mind that SSI takes into account not just your income, but your household income as well.
That means that in addition to not engaging in SGA, you also have to meet certain household income limitations to qualify for SSI.
You could be under SGA, but if your spouse or roommate is making more money than SSI allows, then you will likely not qualify for SSI.
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How To Make More Than The Income Cap And Still Get Ssd Benefits
The TRIAL WORK PERIOD Program
Once the Social Security Administration realized that suspending the SSD benefits of a recipient who succeeded in earning more than the income cap in one month discouraged SSD beneficiaries from trying to work, the SSA needed to solve this dilemma. The SSA wanted to encourage SSD recipients to attempt a return to work, if they thought they were up to it. How else would a disabled person know what they were capable of achieving as time passed and their impaired condition improved?
The Trial Work Period program enables SSD recipients to try to resume working without fear of losing their monthly SSD benefit. Under the TWP plan, a disabled SSD recipient who thinks they may be able to return to work is free to try and continue to get their monthly SSD payments.
There are rules and limits to the TWP program, but the arrangement allows you to earn an unlimited amount of monthly income for a total of nine months. The nine months do not have to be consecutive. They can be spread out over a five-year period.
Which Months Count as Trial Work Period Months?
The Trial Work Period program can run for any nine months in a five-year period. So, which months count as TWP months? While you can earn an unlimited amount of income in each of the nine months of your TWP, any month in which you earn more than $907 is counted as one TWP month. In 2022, the TWP monthly trigger amount will be $970.
The Extended Period Of Eligibility
Once you’ve exhausted your nine-month TWP, you enter the Extended Period of Eligibility . The EPE is a 36-month period during which you’ll continue to receive your full benefit every month as long as you remain disabled and earn less than Social Security’s substantial gainful activity threshold. In 2020, the SGA level is $1,260 for non-blind individuals and $2,110 for the blind.
If you earn over SGA in any month during the EPE, you’ll lose that month’s entire benefit, a situation sometimes referred to as the “cash cliff.” This will also cause Social Security to find that your disability has “ceased.” Once that happens, you will be paid in full for that month and an additional two-month grace period, before benefits terminate.
If you later stop working, or your earnings fall below the SGA level during the EPE, contact Social Security and your benefits will be restarted without having to file a new application. Because it’s so easy to re-start your benefits if your work attempt doesn’t work out, Social Security calls the EPE the “re-entitlement period.”
When the 36-month re-entitlement period ends, your benefits will continue as long as you are medically disabled and not earning SGA. If you earn over SGA for even one month after the 36-month period of re-entitlement, your benefits will terminate. However, if your medical condition makes you stop working again, you may be eligible for expedited reinstatement, if it’s within five years of the EPE.
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Dear Penny: Will Getting A Job Cost Me My Social Security Disability
Dear Penny,
I receive full disability from Social Security. I am 64 and went out on disability at 48 years old.
Since there is now a shortage of labor, I thought I might like to try going back to work. Social Security has a Ticket to Work program, which gives you a limited time to try working without losing your benefits. Is there a downside in trying to go back to an office job? I believe I can work part time and earn less than $1,000 a month without disturbing my benefits.
Also, right now, I do not pay any income tax. Would I really be gaining anything if I went back to work just to have a tax bill wipe out my earnings?
Dear L.,
Getting approved for Social Security Disability Insurance is such a long and complex process, so I understand why you wouldnt want to put your benefits at risk. But I dont see much downside to what youre proposing.
The Ticket to Work program provides training, career counseling and help with finding a job for people who receive disability and want to work again. You can find out more about the services the programs offered at choosework.ssa.gov.
But you dont need to use Ticket to Works services to qualify for a trial work period. Basically, as long as you still have a disability, Social Security lets you test out a new job for up to nine months without affecting your benefits. Theres no limit on how much you can earn during these nine months.
Is Your Condition Found In The List Of Disabling Conditions
For each of the major body systems, we maintain a list of medical conditions that we consider severe enough that it prevents a person from doing substantial gainful activity. If your condition is not on the list, we have to decide if it is as severe as a medical condition that is on the list. If it is, we will find that you are disabled. If it is not, we then go to Step 4.
We have two initiatives designed to expedite our processing of new disability claims:
- Compassionate Allowances: Certain cases that usually qualify for disability can be allowed as soon as the diagnosis is confirmed. Examples include acute leukemia, Lou Gehrigs disease , and pancreatic cancer.
- Quick Disability Determinations: We use sophisticated computer screening to identify cases with a high probability of allowance.
For more information about our disability claims process, visit our Benefits For People With Disabilities website.
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You Can Test Out Your Ability To Work While Collecting Social Security Disability Without Losing Your Benefits
By Aaron Hotfelder, J.D., University of Missouri School of Law
Some recipients of Social Security disability insurance are hesitant to work because they’re unsure how it will affect their disability payments. While this reluctance is understandable, Social Security has special rules that allow people to continue to receive their full monthly benefit while trying out a part-time or even full-time job. Understanding these rules before seeking employment will help you make sure you’re not jeopardizing needed disability payments.
How Have The Number And Share Of People Receiving Disability Benefits Changed Over Time And What Accounts For These Changes
There has been little change over the past two decades in the share of nonelderly adults receiving Supplemental Security due to a disability. In 2011, 2.4 percent of nonelderly adults received Supplemental Security for a disability, compared to 2.1 percent in 1996. This comparison does not, however, take into account demographic and economic changes, particularly the aging of the population and the increase in poverty, which both have increased the number of people who are potentially eligible for Supplemental Security.
Controlling just for income, participation in Supplemental Security by working-age adults who are potentially eligible because of low income has actually declined over the past decade and a half. In 2011 there were 17.6 nonelderly adults receiving Supplemental Security for every 100 nonelderly adults with incomes below 100 percent of the poverty line, compared to 18.5 nonelderly adults in 1996. In other words, the number of nonelderly adults receiving Supplemental Security grew at a slower rate than the number of nonelderly adults with very low incomes.
The share of nonelderly adults receiving Disability Insurance has increased over time. This is largely due to demographic factors, including:
A number of factors account for this one-percentage-point increase in the disability-prevalence rate after accounting for the changes in the age and gender distribution of the workforce, including the following:
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Experts Advice: Dont Go It Alone
Vieillet says the intricacies of each program are confusing, even to the experts. For the average person, it can be downright overwhelming.
When letters from Social Security start coming in the mail, they scare the bejesus out of people, says Teresa Nier, benefits and employment manager with My Employment Options.
For disabled workers, joining a free work-incentive program and employment network can help. Ticket to Work offers benefits protection for recipients who want to test the employment waters. And organizations like My Employment Options have certified benefits counselors on staff to help applicants trudge through the paperwork and fine print all while finding a job that fits their unique needs.
To avoid unexpected benefits cuts or having to return overpayments to the agency, people need to keep Social Security updated with phone numbers and addresses, Nier says. Open those letters. Ask questions.
For James, the idea of not working is unsettling. He doesnt want to be a burden.
Im more of an entrepreneur, he says. Im a very social person. Im very outgoing.
I want to try to make this work. Somehow.
Adam Hardy is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. He specializes in ways to make money that dont involve stuffy corporate offices. Read his latest articles here, or say hi on Twitter .
Canada Pension Plan Disability Benefits
The Canada Pension Plan provides monthly payments to people who contribute to the plan during their working years.
You may be eligible for CPP disability benefits if:
- you contributed to the CPP for a certain number of years
- you’re under 65 years old
- you have a severe and prolonged mental or physical disability
- your disability prevents you from working on a regular basis
The benefits include payments to children of a person with a disability.
Apply as early as possible if you think you’re eligible for CPP disability benefits. Quebec residents may be eligible for a similar program called the Quebec Pension Plan . It may take several months to process your application.
If you applied for CPP or QPP disability benefits and were told that you’re not eligible, you can ask to have your application reviewed or considered again.
Once you reach age 65, your CPP disability benefit will automatically change to regular CPP payments. Your regular CPP payments may be less than the CPP disability payments you got before.
If so, consider:
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