Do I Qualify For Disability If I Only Work Part Time Because of My Disability?

If you are disabled or are currently receiving social security disability from an approved disability claim, you may find that you are able to perform part time work or do a work from home type of job while also collecting your disability.  However, you may be concerned that if you take a part time job or other employment, that it will negatively affect your social security disability that you are already receiving, leading your claim to be reversed and your benefits to be suspended.  Can you work part time and receive social security disability benefits at the same time?  Most people are unaware that the answer is “yes!”  There are certain restrictions that you should be aware of first.

Working Part Time and Collecting Disability

One restriction on working part time and receiving social security disability is that you cannot earn over a certain dollar amount per month while receiving social security disability if you wish to remain eligible for continued disability payments. 

• The maximum monthly income you can earn while also collecting disability is $980 per month as of 2009. 
• This means that as long as you earn LESS than $980 per month, you can still be considered to be disabled and eligible to receive your social security disability payments. 

This is an excellent way to earn a bit of extra money and keep yourself in the employment world, especially if your disability could eventually become less of an issue and allow you to work full time again.

You will also want to keep a careful count of your hours in order to avoid going over the maximum monthly income for workers who are also collecting disability.  In addition, if your case is brought up for a review, a judge may find that you are no longer substantially physically disabled if, for example, you are able to work forty hours per week and receive income based on that work.  So, not only can your monthly income become a consideration, but your ability to work and the type of work you are doing might also become an issue if you are keeping a regular part time job while also collecting disability.

Getting Help

Many attorneys recommend not working if it is at all possible while you are collecting social security disability, as this is the surest way to continue receiving your disability benefits without possible termination of the benefits due to income or work hours.  If you have questions about how your part time job may affect your social security disability, you will want to contact a competent disability attorney in your state for further advice.