The Social Security Administration (SSA) denying your claim for disability benefits when you cannot work to support yourself and your loved ones can be devastating. But why do claims get denied?
Here are two common reasons:
Inadequate evidence
You want to provide adequate evidence regarding your disability to receive benefits. The evidence you provide should prove the existence and severity of your disability.
Obtain such evidence from all acceptable medical sources who have treated you, including hospitals, clinics and other health care facilities and non-medical ones, including yourself, family members, caregivers, friends, neighbors, employers and so on, to avoid delays, or worse, a denial.
Lack of sufficient work credits
Social Security disability benefits automatically change to retirement benefits when one reaches full retirement age. Claimants must have earned at least 40 social security credits to receive retirement benefits. You earn four credits every year. And as of 2024, you earn one credit for every $1,730 in covered earnings (total wages and self-employment income).
To receive disability benefits, you must meet a recent work test and a duration work test. If you are below 24 years old, you need six credits earned in three years – the last year being the year your disability starts.
If you are between 24 and 31 years old, you must have worked half the time between age 21 and the onset of the disability. For example, if you develop a disability at 29, you need four years of work (29-21= 8, which will be divided by half). Therefore, you need 16 credits.
If you are 31 and older, you need at least 20 credits earned within the past 10 years before the disability began.
It’s vital to be adequately informed before your initial application for disability benefits. If your application has already been denied, consider legal guidance to determine your next steps.