SSD Lump Sum Payments and Back Pay
If you know anything at all about the Social Security disability (SSD) application process, it’s probably that it can take a very long time to get approved for benefits. What you may not know is that when you are ultimately approved, you may be owed a significant amount of benefits.
These benefits come in two forms: benefits owed to you from the date of your application, and in some cases benefits reaching back up to one year prior to the time you applied for SSD.
SSD Back Pay and Retroactive Benefits
Back Pay is Based on Your Filing Date, Not Approval
If you’re approved for SSD, you may be entitled to back pay.
Back pay may be owed to you if your application is ultimately approved, the Social Security Administration (SSA) is saying you were eligible when you applied.
There’s a five-month waiting period after you become disabled, but once that has been satisfied, your benefits are backdated. For those who are approved at the initial application stage, this may mean just a few months of back benefits. But, if you have to go through reconsideration and an ALJ hearing to get approved, it may take two years or more from the time you apply to the time you are approved. When that happens, you can expect a substantial lump sum payment to catch up.
This is one reason it’s important not to miss any deadlines in the appeals process. If you miss out on an appeal and have to start the application process all over, you’ll lose out on benefits for any date before your claim was denied.
Retroactive Benefits May Add up to 12 Months of SSD Benefits
Your eligibility for disability is based on the date you became disabled. However, many people don’t file for Social Security disability benefits right away. When you are approved for SSD benefits, the SSA will look at the date you became disabled, and then apply a five-month waiting period. If that five-month waiting period ends earlier than the month when you applied for SSD, you may be entitled to retroactive benefits.
So, if you became disabled 10 months before you applied, you could be eligible for five months of retroactive benefits. (10 months of disability minus the five month waiting period.) But, if you became disabled 17 months or more before you applied, you could be entitled to 12 months of retroactive benefits. You can’t get more than 12 months of retroactive benefits, even if you became disabled more than 17 months before applying. So, it’s in your best interest not to wait too long to apply for disability benefits.
Make Sure You Get all the SSD Benefits You Deserve
A simple mistake like reapplying instead of pursuing an appeal could lose you months or even a year or more of benefits. Most people applying for SSD aren’t familiar with every aspect of the process and the appeals process, and you don’t have to be. At Disability Help Group, our advocates have extensive experience helping people like you assemble the strongest possible application or appeal. To learn more about how we can help, call (800) 800-3332 or contact us here now.
