The major such program isTicket to Work, which offers people on SSDI and SSI job training, work experiences and other services to help them become self-supporting. As do other work incentives, Ticket to Work temporarily waives the SGA earnings limits, so you continue collecting your disability benefits while you engage in trial work with employers who have signed up to participate. If you get a job through the program, you go off disability benefits.
The payments will resume if you have to stop working because your medical condition worsens. The SSA offers work incentives, which are trial periods and programs that allow Social Security disability recipients to transition back into the workforce. You can do this for a limited time without giving up your disability benefits. One program is called Ticket to Work, which offers job training, work experiences, and various services to help them once again return to the workforce and be self-supporting. Program participants get waived SGA limits, so they can continue receiving disability benefits while participating in a trial work program with an employer that participates in the program.
It's important that you understand the meaning of "substantial gainful activity" , as it is called by the SSA. These figures periodically change, but as of 2021, SGA is defined as earning more than $1,310 per month as a disabled individual or $2,190 per month if you are blind. If your monthly earnings exceed SGA, your disability benefits will stop. If you are receiving Social Security Disability benefits, income earned from part-time employment will not affect your disability benefits unless the income is above the "substantial gainful activity" amount, as determined by the SSA.
In other words, if you earn less than $1,000 per month, you will still be eligible for SSDI benefits. On the other hand if you earn more than $1,000 per month, you will be ineligible for any SSDI benefits. For this reason, the vast majority of people choose not to work while getting benefits, so they can avoid overpayments that can jeopardize their benefits. For SSDI, you can only receive benefits if you cannot work a full time job, or enough to be considered substantial gainful activity ($1,350 per month, $2,260 if you're blind).
It is possible to work part time, but this can make it harder to prove you cannot work full time. If you are on SSDI already, you can't start making the SGA amount regularly. To make it easier for you to go back to work, they offer a nine-month trial period. You can receive full benefits for nine months while making over the SGA for nine months to test if you are able to work with your disability. In 2022, any month that you make more than $970 or work more than 80 hours if you're self-employed is considered a trial month.
Part-time employment does not automatically disqualify a person from receiving social security disability benefits. The Social Security Administration considers each case individually and will consider the number of hours worked and the pay earned in order to determine whether a person has a qualifying disability. If you or a loved one needs help obtaining disability benefits, there may be opportunities to work part-time, however, the SGA income limits can be complicated and confusing. By working with Disability Advocates Group, you increase the likelihood of obtaining the benefits you deserve. Once you begin receiving disability benefits, we will provide you with ongoing counsel to make sure your rights are protected.
Although obtaining and maintaining your eligibility for benefits is challenging, we will stand by you every step of the way. Please contact our office today to speak with our experienced disability lawyers. In these situations, wages earned may not be considered SGA even if the actual earnings are over the SGA limit due to the excessive and atypical assistance the worker requires. Therefore, the worker in this situation may be allowed to earn wages above SGA and qualify to receive disability benefits. Generally, self-employed individuals may currently work up to 45 hours per month and still be eligible for disability benefits -- if they are not the only person working for the business and they aren't making substantial income.
The SSA will apply specific tests, depending on how long the individual has been receiving benefits, to determine if a business owner is doing work above the SGA level. For instance, if you've been collecting disability benefits for more than two years, you can actually make a substantial amount of income as long as you don't work more than 45 hours. For more information, see our article on working for yourself while collecting disability.
If you are currently receiving either SSDI benefits or SSI benefits, you should consult with an experienced Illinois social security attorney, like those at Ankin Law Offices, before you begin any part-time employment. Part-time employment can have a significant effect on your social security benefits and there are certain reporting obligations if you are currently receiving social security disability benefits and begin part-time employment. The skilled Illinois social security attorneys are familiar with the many issues affecting social security disability benefits and part-time employment and we can help guide you through each of these issues.
The extent to which any part-time work affects your social security benefits depends on the type of social security benefit you are receiving. Because Supplemental Security Income is a needs-based disability benefits program, any income earned from part-time employment will proportionately reduce the amount of your disability benefits. It is possible that you could earn enough money working part-time that your disability benefits would be eliminated all together. If you are working when you apply for disability benefits and you earn over the SGA limit, your application will likely be denied. In addition, earning lower than the SGA amount does not necessarily mean that you are eligible for benefits.
How Many Hours Can You Work Part Time Social Security will not only consider your monthly earnings but the type of work and the number of hours you work. You just have to make sure your income doesn't exceed the limitations for substantial gainful activity, or SGA. The SGA amount is a set maximum monthly wage that helps the Social Security Administration determine whether or not your disability prevents you from earning a living.
Essentially, if you exceed this limit, they may think you don't need disability benefits anymore. If you make over the SGA income limit amount when you apply for disability benefits, the SSA will almost certainly deny your application. If you're collecting long-term disability benefits and thinking about going back to work, make sure you read your long-term disability policy carefully to understand how working will affect your monthly check. Contact your LTD claims administrator or, even better, a long-term disability attorney if you have questions about your policy. The bottom line is that under many "own occ" policies, disabled individuals can work in another profession without affecting their receipt of LTD benefits too much.
The contract provisions mentioned above have been introduced only recently into a small number of policies. If you're considering going back to work, review the terms of your policy or consult with your attorney to ensure that you continue to receive your full long-term disability benefits without interruption. Read your policy's summary plan description, check with your claims handler, or consult your disability attorney if you're unsure whether you have an "own occupation" or "any occupation" policy. At Disability Advocates Group, our practice is dedicated to protecting the rights of disabled individuals throughout Southern California. If you are seeking disability benefits, you may be wondering whether you can receive benefits while working part-time.
Depending on the circumstances, working part-time while on disability may affect your benefit status. The best way to protect your rights is to consult our experienced disability lawyers. If you are confused about your SGA or your income limits, or need help applying for benefits or appealing a denial of benefits with the SSA, you should consider hiring a disability benefits lawyer or advocate. A lawyer or advocate can help you gather necessary evidence, fill out your application, and make sure that you maximize your chance of receiving the disability benefits you need. If you make it through the trial program and get a job through the program, you will give up your disability benefits. But if your medical condition returns, or if it worsens, you can give up your job and start receiving disability benefits once again.
The Ticket to Work program is available to both Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income recipients. Many policies provide for residual or partial disability payments, which allow someone capable of only part-time work to receive ongoing benefits. Earnings between 20% and 80% of your prior income will usually reduce your full LTD amount in proportion to your income.
You'll be expected to provide your LTD insurer with proof of your earnings and hours worked on a monthly basis. In a similar vein, many LTD policies contain "Return to Work Incentives," which state that individuals found disabled cannot receive benefits and wages that total more than 100% of their pre-disability earnings. If your wages and monthly disability benefit exceed that threshold, your insurer will reduce your monthly benefit until your combined wages and benefits equal your pre-disability earnings. Under some policies, this dollar-for-dollar reduction occurs only during the first twelve months of disability, and continues to a lesser degree thereafter. SSA has established various programs to encourage disability benefit recipients to return to the workforce if their medical conditions so allow .
A trial work period allows you to attempt to return to work, during which the can earn more than the SGA limit and still receive the full SSDI amount. You can work part time while you apply for Social Security disability benefits, as long as your earnings don't exceed a certain amount set by Social Security each year. If you earn more than this amount, called the "substantial gainful activity" limit, Social Security assumes you can do a substantial amount of work, and you won't be eligible for disability benefits. The SGA limits are adjusted each year based on the average wage changes. It is critical to understand that almost every employer provided disability policy requires that an employee be working a certain number of "minimum hours" per week in order to be eligible for and covered by disability insurance.
Another incentive is known as the "Ticket to Work" program which is available to both SSDI and SSI beneficiaries. The program allows beneficiaries to engage in trial work with participating employers and continue collecting their disability benefits. If a beneficiary finds a job through the program the benefits will end; benefits will resume if a beneficiary must stop working because the condition has worsened, however.
Although disability benefits are not available to those who earn more than the SGA amount, the SSA provides incentives that allow beneficiaries to return to work without jeopardizing their benefits. For example, SSDI beneficiaries are allowed a trial period of up to 9 months during which they can still receive their benefits while testing their ability to work. The trial months need not be consecutive and can be spread out over 5 years.
During the trial period, the full benefit is paid regardless of earnings. Additionally, if you quit your job before you apply for disability benefits, you must be able to demonstrate that you left because your medical condition worsened, not because you wanted to meet the SGA requirement. Moreover, certain volunteer activities may indicate that you are able to perform some type of work, which may make you ineligible for disability benefits.
From the start of the application process for disability benefits to long after you've been approved, there are many difficult questions you may have. After you start receiving benefits, the rules change a bit as to whether you can work part time. For Social Security disability insurance , technically the SGA limit still applies, but you have what's called a "trial work period." This is a period of nine months during which you can more than the SGA limit. Finally, many "any occ" policies offer rehabilitation incentives designed to help disabled individuals get back to work. These programs usually allow those who participate in approved rehabilitation or job-training programs to receive an extra 5% to 10% of their monthly LTD benefits. There is also an extended period of eligibility that lasts about 36 months.
You will still receive your full benefits if you remain disabled and earn less than $1,070 for non-blind individuals and $1,800 for the blind. This is what is called the Social Security substantial gainful activity threshold. If you happen to go over this threshold, you benefits will be reduced. The good thing is that if fall back below it, you full benefits will be reinstated.
A person working below the SGA amount, but who works for many hours per week to earn that money may not be eligible for SSDI benefits. This is because consistent work of substantial hours per week can lead SSA to conclude that the person's medical condition does not keep them from being able to be a consistent worker earning above SGA. This section will list the minimum number of hours per week that you need to work to remain covered, if you are unsure about the numbers of hours, ask your HR department. On the other hand, earning a high wage does not necessarily mean that you are performing substantial gainful activity.
If your employer provides special conditions that allow you to work, for example, the cost of any impairment-related expenses can be deducted from your earnings to determine your monthly amount. Fortunately, there are exceptions to SGA that will allow you to earn more money while still receiving your disability benefits. These are special programs that allow disability recipients to transition back into the workforce. The best time to attempt one of these programs will vary based on conditions unique to each case.
If you are receiving disability benefits and you are interested in returning to work part-time, you should speak with your disability attorney. Our disability team works to help disabled workers get approved for the benefits they need. If you receive SSDI benefits, you can take a trial period of 9 months to see if you are able to return to the workforce. During those 9 months, you can receive your SSDI benefits while you work.
Those 9 months can be spread out over a five-year period, and regardless of what you earn during a trial month, you can keep your disability benefits. After those 9 months, if you can return to work you will lose your disability benefits. The extent to which you can return to work under an "any occ" policy depends on the specifics of your plan, but typically the more you're earning in your new job, the more your LTD check will be reduced. If you're earning less than 20% of your pre-disability income, your disability payment will likely be unaffected.
On the other hand, wages of 80% or more of your pre-disability income could terminate your LTD benefits entirely. "Any occupation" (or "any occ") long-term disability policies provide disability benefits for those who become unable to perform any occupation for which they are reasonably suited based on their education, training, and experience. Many disability policies transition from "own occ" to the less generous "any occ" standard after a period of 24 months. For many people who are struggling to work due to an acute unexpected medical condition, they do not have the opportunity to prepare or plan for filing a short and or long term disability claim. My experience is that most people who eventually file disability claims, have chronic medical conditions which have been ongoing for months and even years.
If you want to apply for disability benefits as a self-employed individual, you still cannot make more than the SSA's income limits. Yet, proving your income when applying for benefits can quickly get confusing. As you can see, working part-time while applying for disability benefits runs the risk of having your claim denied.
For this reason, it is crucial to consult an experienced disability lawyer before submitting a benefits application. The Social Security Administration defines a disability as having a qualifying medical condition that prevents you from performing substantial gainful activity , which is work that provides a certain amount of income each month. For 2020, the SGA is $1,260 per month for non-blind individuals and $2,110 per month for blind individuals. If it is determined that you cannot work after your trial period, you can go back to receiving SSDI as normal.
If you do choose to go back to work, you will still be able to receive benefits for any month you don't make over the SGA limit for 36 months. If, at any point during the 36 months you decide you can't work, then you need to call the SSA and they will reinstate your benefits. After the 36 month period, the SSA will keep you application on file for five years, so will not have to complete a new application and your reinstatement will be expedited.
