The Social Security Administration (SSA) is in charge of five major programs, and while it is most known for its retirement benefits, the second most well-known program it manages is Social Security Disability Insurance payouts.
SSDI, or handicap Insurance, provides benefits to people who have a handicap that prevents or severely limits their capacity to work. In general, to be eligible for this payment, you must have worked for a number of years and paid a specific amount of payroll taxes.
The amount of time and payroll taxes that a former employee must have contributed to obtain the benefit varies depending on their age when they became disabled.
To obtain the SSDI benefit, the SSA requires two conditions:
1.You have a disability or blindness
You must have a disability that prevents you from working for a year or more or will cause your death. According to the SSA’s website, “If you continue to work, your condition must also prevent you from earning money above an amount we define “substantial gainful activity” (SGA). In 2024, SGA is $1,550 per month, or $2,590 if you are judged blind by our rules. We apply different rules to evaluate SGA if you are self-employed.”
2.You have enough work history
To qualify for Disability, you must have worked at least 5 of the last 10 years. People under the age of 24 may not have had to labour as long.
Another feature of SSDI is that if you have been out of work for at least two years, the program will automatically enrol you in Medicare, which is typically not available to persons under the age of 65 (although there are many exclusions for Social Security participants).
Some disabled individuals’ family members may also be eligible for benefits under another SSA program known as Family Benefits. Qualifying beneficiaries may receive up to half of your family member’s benefit amount and may also be eligible for Medicare based on their employment history.
So, when are SSDI payments distributed?
Like most SSA benefits, those eligible for disability benefits are divided into two categories: those who began collecting benefits before May 1997 will receive payments on the third of each month (except when it falls on a weekend or a national holiday, in which case the benefit is moved to the prior date when banks are open and the US Postal Service delivers mail).
For those who began receiving benefits after May 1997, the payment date is determined by their birth date. As a general rule, recipients with birthdays on the 1st-10th of the month will receive their benefits on the second Wednesday of that month, those born on the 11th-20th will receive payouts on the third Wednesday, and those born on the 21st-31st will receive payments on the fourth Wednesday. The National Holiday date change continues to apply to these benefits.
If we consider these dates and apply them to the month of December, taking into consideration the peculiarities in the calendar this month due to Christmas, we get the following distribution dates:
December 3: SSDI payment for people who started receiving payments before May 1997. It was distributed yesterday.
- December 11: SSDI payment for those born between the 1st and 10th of any month and started after May 1997. Next week will see this round of payments hit beneficiaries accounts.
- December 18: SSDI payment for those with a birthday between the 11th and 20th of any month and are beneficiaries after May 1997.
- December 24: SSDI payment for those born between the 21st and 31st of any month, beneficiaries after May 1997. The payment should go out on the 25th, but that is Christmas Day, and thus a National Holiday. This means that the payment is delivered in advance to ensure that beneficiaries are not negatively affected by any potential delays.
Also See:- Calculate the increase in Social Security retired worker checks – Official increase for January 2025