My child gets social security disability. Will

No, once a child is approved for benefits that will not change unless the child is no longer disabled or is no longer severely disabled.  When Social Security determines the eligibility and benefit payment amount of a child participating a Social Security program they will consider the income and resources of the parents or other people that are responsible for that child’s welfare and support and that process is called, “deeming.”  The deeming is based on the idea that people responsible to each other and sharing lives also share income and resources so that the income of the parents is considered in determining the income needs of the child.

Deemed Parental Income

Almost all income received by the parents of the disabled child will be deemed unless that income is specifically excluded from the deeming process by a federal law other than the Social Security Act or is income from a pension of some type.  Below are examples of deemed income:

• Public welfare income
• Food stamps
• Tax refunds    
• Money from grants, scholarship, tuition gift
• Housing assistance
• The market value of home grown fruits and vegetables
• Child support payments
• Dividend or interest income
• Earned income of student under age twenty two
• Parental income and wages from employment

Members of military that receive retroactive payments for hostile fire and imminent danger or for family separation allowance as the result of deployment to or while serving in a combat zone should know that those wages are not included in the deeming process.

Getting Legal Help

If you are unsure of how the “deeming” process works it would be important to contact a disability lawyer to access experienced guidance on all aspects of the Social Security Administration application process.