Yes, you can work while receiving Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits, but only within strict limits. Payments will stop if you are engaged in what Social Security calls “substantial gainful activity.” SGA, as it’s known, is defined in 2022 as earning more than $1,350 a month (or $2,260 if you are blind). Show
If your income exceeds those caps, you cannot collect disability benefits, unless you are taking part in one of Social Security’s "work incentives" — programs and trial periods aimed at helping SSDI recipients transition back into the workforce without sacrificing their benefits. Some work incentives are also available to recipients of Supplemental Security Income (SSI), which is administered by Social Security and also provides benefits to people with disabilities. The major such program is Ticket 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. SSDI beneficiaries are also allowed a trial period of up to nine months to test their ability to work. The trial months can be spread out over five years, and during these months you can get your full benefit regardless of your earnings. You’ll find more information on these and other work incentives in the Social Security publication "Working While Disabled — How We Can Help." Keep in mind
Updated December 23, 2021
How Your SSDI Payments Are CalculatedThe severity of your disability will not affect the amount of SSDI benefits you receive. The Social Security Administration (SSA) will determine your payment based on your lifetime average earnings before you became disabled. Your benefit amount will be calculated using your covered earnings. These are your earnings at jobs where your employer took money out of your wages for Social Security or FICA. Your SSDI monthly benefit will be based on your average covered earnings over a period of time, which is referred to as your average indexed monthly earnings (AIME). The SSA uses these amounts in a formula to determine your primary insurance amount (PIA). This is the basic amount used to establish your benefit. SSDI payments range on average between $800 and $1,800 per month. The maximum benefit you could receive in 2020 is $3,011 per month. The SSA has an online benefits calculator that you can use to obtain an estimate of your monthly benefits. Other Income That May Reduce Your SSDI PaymentIf you receive other government benefits, your monthly SSDI benefit could be reduced. Sources of income that could affect your payment include:
Can You Receive Retroactive Payments?Once the SSA approves your SSDI application and calculates your monthly benefit, you may be entitled to a back pay award. How many months of payments you will receive will depend on the date you applied for benefits and your disability onset date. If you are applying for SSDI benefits, you need the assistance of a skilled Social Security disability lawyer to get your application approved and receive the benefits you deserve. To schedule a free consultation with a member of our legal team, fill out the online form on this page or call our Roswell office today. You can make a small amount of income while collecting disability benefits, but how much depends on whether you get SSDI or SSI benefits.How much you can earn while on disability is different for individuals currently getting SSDI (Social Security disability insurance) benefits and those getting SSI (Supplemental Security Income) benefits. For a discussion of how much you can work when first applying for benefits, see our section on working and eligibility for Social Security disability. This article is about how working affects people who are currently receiving SSDI benefits, versus how working affects people who are currently receiving SSI benefits. Can You Work While on SSDI?Generally, SSDI recipients can't do what's considered "substantial gainful activity" (SGA) and continue to receive disability benefits. In a nutshell, doing SGA means you're working and making more than $1,350 per month in 2022 (or $2,260 if you're blind). So that's how much you can make in 2022 without affecting your disability benefits. And, you can deduct disability-related work expenses from that total. For more information, see our article on SSDI income limits. But, to encourage SSDI recipients to go back to work, Social Security has created some exceptions to this rule. SSDI recipients are entitled to a "trial work period" during which they can make more than the SGA amount without losing benefits. Trial work period. For a nine-month trial work period, SSDI recipients are entitled to test their ability to work and continue to receive full benefits regardless of whether they make more than the SGA amount. For 2022, the Social Security Administration (SSA) considers any month where a person has a monthly income of more than $970 to be a trial work month. If you're self-employed, any month where you work more than 80 hours can also be considered a trial work month. Extended period of eligibility. Once you've completed the nine-month trial work period (the months don't need to be consecutive), you can still receive SSDI for any month where your earnings fall below the SGA level, for a period of 36 months. This three-year period is called the "extended period of eligibility." In other words, if you earn less than $1,350 in any month during this period, you will get benefits, but if you earn more than $1,350 in any month, you won't get disability benefits for that month (after a three-month grace period). Expedited reinstatement. If Social Security stops your SSDI payments because of SGA, the agency gives you five years during which your benefits can be reinstated if you again stop working because of your disability. During this five-year period, called the "expedited reinstatement period," the SSA won't require you to file a new disability application to get benefits. For more information, see our article on the trial work period, the extended period of eligibility, and expedited reinstatement. How Much Can you Make While on SSI Benefits?After you're approved for SSI, the SGA limit no longer applies to you. With SSI, income works a bit differently. You can begin to work and continue to receive SSI benefits as long as your wages and other resources don't exceed the SSA's income limit for SSI; but your monthly benefit amount will be reduced in proportion to your income. Here's how the SSA reduces your income due to your earnings. Both the federal benefit amount and the SSI countable income limit are $841 (in 2022). The SSA will reduce your benefit by the amount of your "countable income." Fortunately, not all of your income is countable income. Calculating countable income. If your only income is from your job, the SSA doesn't include the first $85 you earn toward your countable income. After taking the $85 adjustment off of your income, the SSA will deduct, from your monthly benefits, 50 cents for every dollar you earn. For example, if you earn $1,000 a month from working, you have $457.50 of countable income. $1,000 Your monthly SSI benefit amount would be reduced by $457.50. You can earn up to about $1,675 a month, if you have no other income, before your SSI benefit is reduced to zero. State supplemental payments. Your monthly benefit amount is also affected by the amount your state adds to the federal SSI payment, if any. For more information, see our article on how much SSI pays. Expedited reinstatement. If your SSI payments stop because you earn too much money (that is, if your countable income is over $841 per month), but you are then forced to quit work because of your disability, the SSA will reinstate your benefits without the need for a new application for a period of five years. Ticket to Work program. Social Security has a program that helps SSI recipients with disabilities to pursue career planning. The program provides free employment support services, including benefits counseling and a continuation of Medicaid benefits if you go back to work. Learn more about the Ticket to Work program and other SSI work incentive programs. Disability-Related Work ExpensesIf, because of your disability, you have certain work-related expenses that a non-disabled person wouldn't have, the SSA will deduct these costs from your monthly earnings when calculating your benefits. Examples of qualifying expenses include special transportation needs, computer support services, or counseling services. These are called impairment-related work expenses, or IRWE. Reporting RequirementsBoth SSI and SSDI recipients must report to the SSA:
You must also report the amount of your monthly wages (if any) to the SSA. If you report your wages by telephone, it must be done by the 6th of the next month; if you mail or bring in your paystub to your local SSA, it must be done by the 10th of the next month. SSDI and SSI recipients can now report wages online using their Social Security account, and SSI recipients can now also report wages with a smartphone app. Social Security's website has more information on telephone wage reporting and online wage reporting. Also, see our section on reporting changes to Social Security to find out what other changes you may need to report. Working While Applying for BenefitsKeep in mind that the mere fact that you're working, even if you are making somewhat less than $1,350 per month, may influence whether a disability claims examiner or a disability judge believes you're disabled, especially if you're working more than 15 or 20 hours a week. For this reason, many disability lawyers and representatives will advise their clients not to work while their case is pending. For more information, see our article on whether you have to quit work when applying for disability benefits. Updated December 10, 2021 How much can I earn and keep my Social Security Disability?You can make up to $1,350 (or $2,260 if you are blind) in 2022 on Social Security Disability or your benefits will stop, which is known as Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA). During the trial work period, there are no limits on your earnings, but you cannot exceed the SGA amount.
Can I earn money while on Social Security Disability?Payments will stop if you are engaged in what Social Security calls “substantial gainful activity.” SGA, as it's known, is defined in 2022 as earning more than $1,350 a month (or $2,260 if you are blind).
What is the income limit for SSDI in 2023?SSDI income limits
In 2023, most SSDI recipients can earn up to $1,470 a month from work without risk to their benefits, up from $1,350 the previous year. The cap is higher for beneficiaries who are blind: They can make up to $2,460 a month, a $200 increase from 2022.
How much can I make on Social Security Disability a month?In 2021, disabled workers can earn up to $1,310 per month and still qualify under the SGA limit. There is a higher limit for blind workers, who can earn up to $2,190 per month. If you earn above this limit, you may not qualify for SSD benefits.
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