Can I Work if I am Receiving Social Security Disability?
To receive disability benefits from the Social Security Administration (SSA), you must have a work-limiting condition. In fact, this program is granted to those people who have a physical or mental illness and who are considered not be able to maintain a job.
However, there is a “ticket to work” program. Those who take advantage of this program can work while receiving disability benefits. It is very important to inform the agency, since disability benefits can be adjusted depending on the income of the program participant.
If you have been afraid of starting to work and ending up without benefits, in this article we will clarify your doubts.
Can you work while receiving disability benefits?
The short answer is yes. In Puerto Rico, many people who receive Social Security disability benefits find themselves having to work. It may be because they want an additional source of income or because they want to interact with other people and feel more useful.
The good news is that people who receive these benefits can have the opportunity to work, as long as they conform to the rules established by the Social Security Administration.
First, Social Security has an incentive known as the "ticket to work." Likewise, it is governed by a probationary period and other special rules that must be met to avoid being left without benefits.
What is the ticket to work?
Social Security must review all disability cases every 3, 5, or 7 years. In this way, time is taken to reevaluate medical records to determine if the person who is benefiting continues with their condition.
The Social Security ticket to work is not a ticket that is physically received. All people who receive benefits can enroll in the program. This is a program that works through agencies or organizations that help people who have a condition that limits their abilities to work get jobs. Therefore, if you have a disability and have made the decision to work, you may be assisted in finding the most suitable job for you.
Likewise, with the ticket to work you can receive other benefits, such as job references to find a good job and free vocational rehabilitation. Other types of aid include the work equipment that the disabled person may need to perform in the workplace. To know and take advantage of all the benefits of the ticket to work, we recommend that you seek advice from our office.
To start working with a disability
If you want to work and are receiving disability benefits, consider the following:
You must notify Social Security that you have started working
To avoid losing disability benefits, you are required to notify Social Security that you have decided to work. This step is not done through the ticket to work, but directly at the Social Security Administration.
When can you have a medical review?
Working may be an indication of improvement, so Social Security may initiate a medical review to determine if you still have a disability. However, since it is within the ticket to work program, such a review will not be necessary.
There will be a probationary period
The probationary period is 9 months. During this time you can work and continue receiving benefits. It happens that many people with disabilities want to work. However, when they begin to do so, they may not be able to fulfill work assignments due to their condition, stress, or a relapse. Therefore, these 9-months trial serve to determine whether the person can work or not.
These nine months begin as soon as there is income from work.
During the nine-months trial you can earn any salary. Likewise, people who are self-employed, as an additional requirement, have a limit of eighty working hours.
Likewise, these nine months of testing do not have to be consecutive. This means that you can work on several job offers and the trial months can be at different times until you complete the total of nine months.
After you have completed the nine months trial, Social Security will conduct a review to determine if you have earned more than the approved limit. For blind people, the limit is higher without affecting their Social Security disability benefits.
After the nine months, the program participant must remain within certain income limits. Otherwise, your disability benefits will be affected.
In conclusion, you can work and, as long as you do not exceed the earnings limits approved by Social Security, you will continue to receive benefits. To find out the exact limit amounts, you can contact our disability benefits attorneys.
What to do if you lose your job and have lost disability benefits
At the end of your probationary period, you will have up to a maximum of five years to reapply for benefits if you have lost your job and continue to be disabled. It is not necessary to make a new application for disability benefits. This way the application process will not take long, because you only have to notify that you have already stopped working and remain disabled. What you need is to have your case reopened.
Find a disability lawyer so you don't lose your benefits
To work while receiving disability benefits, the most important thing is that you report to Social Security that you have started working and take into account the other steps to follow.
In Fuentes & Fuentes, as Social Security lawyers in Puerto Rico, we can provide you with the advice you need as soon as possible. Your orientation will be free and without obligation. This way, you will be able to know the rules that you must fully comply with to work and continue receiving disability benefits and other related procedures.
