Social Security Disability and the Date Last Insured

There are two programs to help disabled workers:

• Social Security Disability for workers who have paid into Social Security Disability.
• Supplemental Social Security Income (SSI) for disabled individuals with few assets or resources.

Social Security Disability claimants must have worked long enough within a certain time to qualify for benefits. Working for a long period in the past and paying into the Social Security may not be sufficient to qualify for Social Security Disability.

The rule is that you must have a certain number of work credits in a certain time period to qualify for benefits. You can earn up to four work credits per year if you work the full year.

Generally, you need 20 work credits earned in the past 10 years to be eligible for Social Security Disability Benefits. That is, you must have worked and paid into Social Security Disability 5 of the 10 years before you became disabled. There are exceptions to this rule for younger individuals and for blind individuals. Work credits from many years ago do not count for eligibility.

Disabled individuals, who have not worked for many years before they became disabled, can face serious problems regarding eligibility. They not meet the earnings test.

The date up to which a disabled claimant is eligible for Social Security Disability is called “Date Last Insured” (DLI). If you are found disabled before your DLI you will not be eligible for Social Security Disability. If you are found disabled after your DLI you might still be eligible for SSI benefits, if your assets and resources are low.

To increase your chances of winning your Social Security Disability claim it is important for you to hire an experienced Social Security Disability attorney to get you the Social Security Disability help you deserve. Please call us at 1-800-882-5500 or fill out a form on our website for a FREE claim evaluation.