Social Security Disability - are There Retroactive Benefits

Are there retroactive benefits payable to Social Security and/or Supplemental Security Income beneficiaries? The answer to this question is “possibly”.

Retroactive disability benefits are not guaranteed in every Social Security disability case. In fact, many individuals receive no Social Security disability retroactive benefits.

So just what determines an individual’s entitlement to retroactive benefits through the Social Security Disability programs? There are three details that affect the possibility of retroactive benefits. These are date of filing, date of onset, and date of entitlement.

The date of filing is the date that you set your disability appointment with Social Security or the day you went to your local office and were seen. Social Security may give twelve months retroactivity if an individual has met work requirements (either not working or under the substantial gainful work activity amount), which means that if you have met this requirement and work is not an issue, Social Security may potentially pay you twelve months of retroactive benefits prior to your date of filing, if you are medically allowed for Social Security disability.

However, the date of onset must also be considered when determining the amount of any potential retroactive benefits. What is the “date of onset? The date of onset simply means the date you became unable to work above the substantial gainful activity amount because of your mental and/or medical impairments.

Now for the third and final detail that affects an individual’s ability to receive retroactive disability benefits. This final detail is “date of entitlement”.

What determines the date of entitlement? The date of entitlement is the six-month point following the date of onset for Social Security disability beneficiaries. Why the sixth month? There is a five month waiting period for which no benefits are payable for Social Security disability beneficiaries, therefore an individual’s entitlement date is set at the sixth month following the date they became unable to perform substantial gainful work activity due to their impairments.

Does the five month waiting period apply to both social security disability and SSI? Supplemental Security Income disability (SSI) is a need based disability program that is also administered by Social Security, and the same rules apply as to retroactive benefits---except the five-month waiting period. There is no waiting period with Supplemental Security Income because it is a need-based program.

Many Social Security disability beneficiaries may potentially be entitled to Supplemental Security benefits for the five months they were not able to receive their regular Social Security disability benefit. So they may be entitled to receive retroactive disability benefits for those months. However any months of Supplemental Security income benefits paid are deducted from the total Social Security disability retroactive benefits payable if an individual is entitled to both programs.

Okay, so you are wondering what determines an individual’s entitlement to retroactive benefits if they have to use the appeal process to win their disability claim. If an individual has to use the appeal process, the same three details affect the date the individual became entitled to receive disability benefits.

Consequently, Social Security will pay retroactive benefits back to the date of entitlement even if it means paying several months, or even years, of Social Security back benefits.









Return to:

Social Security Disability Secrets

Social Security Disability Requirements



Other Posts and Pages
Qualifying for disability
Qualify for Disability (What conditions do?)
What conditions qualify for SSI?