It is nothing less than good news if you are slowly making progress toward a recovery from your incurred physical, mental, or emotional disability. As you start to feel better, you may feel more confident in your ability to rejoin the workforce. However, you may fear that you are being overly ambitious and that you may lose your Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits in the process. But you may rest easier knowing that the Social Security Administration (SSA) has a program that allows you to test the waters, so to speak. Continue reading to learn whether you can afford to go without these monthly payments and how an experienced New Jersey SSDI benefits lawyer at The Law Offices of Sheryl Gandel Mazur can help ensure your financial security.
Can I afford to go without my monthly SSDI benefits?
Understandably so, it can be a big leap to rejoin the workforce after months or even years of suffering through a disability. This is especially true if, no matter how great of a recovery you make, you can still never return to the “normal” physical, mental, or emotional state you once carried. This is why the SSA has special rules that allow you to work without jeopardizing your monthly SSDI benefits payments. Namely, this opportunity is offered through the Trial Work Period.
You may automatically enter the Trial Work Period as soon as you begin receiving benefits, so there may not be any extra legwork on your part. This period is set to last nine months. And as of 2024, the cap on earnings is set at $1,110 per month. So, if your monthly gross earnings from working exceed $1,110, then this may count as one of your nine allotted months. But if your monthly earnings are below $1,110, it does not count. This is to say that your Trial Work Period may not be set for nine months straight. Rather, this may take you a year or more to see through.
What happens after the Trial Work Period?
After you exacerbated your Trial Work Period, you may enter an Extended Period of Eligibility set to last three years. Here, you may continue to work while collecting monthly SSDI benefits payments. But this is so long as your countable earnings are at or below the substantial gainful activity (SGA) level. As of 2024, this cap is set at $1,550 per month or $2,590 per month if you are blind.
Once you begin earning above the SGA level and subsequently stop receiving benefits, you may enter an Expedited Reinstatement period set to last five years. Here, you may be able to quickly get back on SSDI benefits at any time your countable earnings happen to drop below the SGA level.
At the end of the day, you can rely on a skilled New Jersey SSDI benefits lawyer to serve as the support system you need during this trying time. So please seek the legal counsel of The Law Offices of Sheryl Gandel Mazur today.
