Working While

Disabled — How
We Can Help
2016
What’s inside
Contacting Social Security. . . . . . 3

Getting disability benefits?

We can help you get to work. . . . . 4

Social Security disability rules

Social Security work
incentives at a glance. . . . . . . . . . . 6

How your earnings affect your

Social Security benefits. . . . . . . . . 8

What to report if you

work and receive Social
Security disability . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

If you lose your job. . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Special rules for workers

who are blind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Supplemental Security Income

(SSI) program rules
SSI work incentives at a glance. . 10

Plan to achieve
self-support (PASS). . . . . . . . . . . . 12

How your earnings

affect your SSI payments. . . . . . . 17

What to report if you

work and receive SSI . . . . . . . . . . 18

How long your Medicaid

will continue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
 Contacting Social Security
Visit our website
At our website, [Link],
you can:
• Create a my Social Security account
to review your Social Security
Statement, verify your earnings, print a
benefit verification letter, change your
direct deposit information, request
a replacement Medicare card, get a
replacement 1099/1042S, and more;
• Apply for Extra Help with Medicare
prescription drug plan costs;
• Apply for retirement, disability, and
Medicare benefits;
• Get the address of your local Social
Security office;
• Find copies of our publications; and
• Get answers to frequently asked
questions.
For more information on work
incentives and other topics in this
booklet, go to our special worksite pages
at [Link]/work.

Call us
Call us toll-free at 1-800-772-1213 or
at our TTY number, 1-800-325-0778, if
you’re deaf or hard of hearing.
We provide general information by
automated phone service 24 hours a day.
You can also use this automated response
system to tell us a new address or request
a replacement Medicare card. We can
answer your case-specific questions from
7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday.
You’ll generally have a shorter wait time
if you call after Tuesday.
We treat all calls confidentially, and
a second Social Security representative
monitors some telephone calls, because
we want to make sure you receive
accurate and courteous service.
 Getting disability benefits? We
can help you get to work
If you’re getting disability
benefits, we have good news
for you. Social Security’s work
incentives and Ticket to Work
programs can help you if you’re
interested in working.
Special rules make it possible
for people receiving Social Security
disability benefits or Supplemental
Security Income (SSI) to work and still
receive monthly payments.
And, if you can’t continue
working because of your medical
condition, your benefits can start
again — you may not have to file a
new application.
Work incentives include:
• Continued cash benefits for a time
while you work;
• Continued Medicare or Medicaid
while you work; and
• Help with education, training, and
rehabilitation to start a new line
of work.
Social Security and SSI have
different rules. We describe the rules
under each program in this booklet.
Social Security incentives begin on
page 6, and SSI incentives start on
page 10.
If you’re receiving Social Security
or SSI, let us know right away when
you start or stop working, or if any
other change occurs that could affect
your benefits.
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 The Ticket to Work program may
also help you if you’d like to work.
You can receive:
• Free vocational rehabilitation;
• Training;
• Job referrals; and
• Other employment support.
You won’t undergo medical reviews
while you’re using the free “ticket”
and making timely progress pursuing
your plan for returning to work.
When you’re ready to explore
your work options, we have a
Ticket to Work Help Line that
lets you talk with us about work,
benefits, or our work incentive
programs. Call 1-866-YOURTICKET
(1-866-968-7842), Monday
through Friday between 8 a.m.
and 8 p.m. EST. If you’re deaf or
hard of hearing, you may call our
TTY number, 1-866-833-2967. Or
you can call our toll-free number
and ask for Your Ticket to Work
(Publication No. 05-10061).
You can also visit the
Ticket to Work website at
[Link]/work for
more information.

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 Social Security work incentives
at a glance
(The SSI program rules begin
on page 10.)
Trial work period — The trial work
period allows you to test your ability
to work for at least nine months.
During your trial work period, you’ll
receive your full Social Security
benefits regardless of how much
you’re earning as long as you report
your work, and you continue to have a
disability. In 2016, a trial work month
is any month your total earnings are
over $810. If you’re self-employed, you
have a trial work month when you
earn more than $810 (after expenses)
or work more than 80 hours in your
own business. The trial work period
continues until you have worked nine
months within a 60-month period.
Extended period of eligibility —
After your trial work period, you
have 36 months during which you
can work and still receive benefits
for any month your earnings aren’t
“substantial.” In 2016, we consider
earnings over $1,130 ($1,820 if you’re
blind) to be substantial. During a
trial work period, a new application
or disability decision aren’t
necessary to get your Social Security
disability benefit.
Expedited reinstatement — If your
benefits stop because of substantial
earnings, you have five years to ask
us to restart your benefits if you’re

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unable to keep working because of
your condition. You won’t have to
file a new application or wait for your
benefits to restart while we review
your medical condition.
Continuation of Medicare — If
your Social Security disability
benefits stop because of your
earnings, but you’re
still disabled, your
free Medicare Part A
coverage will continue
for at least 93 months
after the nine-month trial
work period. After that, you can buy
Medicare Part A coverage by paying
a monthly premium. If you have
Medicare Part B coverage, you must
continue to pay the premium. If you
want to end your Part B coverage, you
must request it in writing.
Work expenses related to your
disability — If you work, you may
have to pay for certain items and
services for which people without
disabilities don’t pay. For example,
because of your medical condition,
you may need to take a taxi to work
instead of public transportation; or
you may need to pay for counseling
services. We may be able to deduct
these expenses from your monthly
earnings before we decide if you’re
still eligible for benefits.

7
 How your earnings affect your
Social Security benefits
During the trial work period,
there are no limits on your earnings.
During the 36-month extended
period of eligibility, you usually can
make no more than $1,130 a month
or your benefits will stop. But, we
deduct the work expenses you have
because of your disability when we
count your earnings. If you have extra
work expenses, your earnings could
be substantially higher than $1,130
before they affect your benefits. This
substantial earnings amount usually
increases each year.
Your work expenses may include
the costs of any items or services you
need to work, even if they are also
useful in your daily living. Examples
include copayments for prescriptions,
counseling services, transportation
to and from work (under certain
conditions), a personal attendant
or job coach, a wheelchair, or any
specialized work equipment.

8
 What to report if you
work and receive Social
Security disability
If you receive Social Security
because of a disability, you or your
representative must tell us right
away if:
• You start or stop work;
• You reported your work, but your
duties, hours, or pay change; or
• You start paying expenses for work
because of your disability.
You can report changes in your
work by phone, mail, or in person.
You can find your local office on our
website at [Link].
We’ll give you a receipt to confirm
your report. Keep this receipt with
all your other important papers from
Social Security.

If you lose your job

If you lose your job during a trial
work period, your benefits aren’t
affected. If you lose your job during
the 36-month extended period of
eligibility, call us and we’ll reinstate
your benefits as long as you’re
still disabled.

9
 Special rules for workers who
are blind
If you’re blind, and you work
while receiving your Social Security
benefits, there are special rules:
• You can earn up to $1,820 a month
in 2016 before your earnings may
affect your benefits.
• If you earn too much to receive
disability benefits, you’re still
eligible for a disability “freeze.”
This means we won’t count those
years in which you had little or no
earnings because of your disability
in figuring your future benefits.
This can help you because we
base your benefits on your highest
earnings over your work life. For
more information on special rules for
blind persons, read If You Are Blind
or Have Low Vision — How We Can
Help (Publication No. 05-10052).

SSI work incentives at a glance

(The Social Security disability
rules begin on page 6.)
Continuation of SSI — We pay SSI
benefits to people who are age 65,
blind, or disabled, and who have little
income or resources. If you’re disabled
and work despite your disability, you
may continue to receive payments
until your earnings, added with any
other income, exceed the SSI income
limits. This limit is different in every
state. Even if your SSI payments stop,

10
your Medicaid coverage usually will
continue if your earnings are less
than your state level.
Expedited reinstatement — If we
stopped your payments because of
your earnings, and you become unable
to work again because of your medical
condition, you may ask us to restart
your benefits. You won’t have to file a
new disability application if you make
this request within five years after the
month your benefits stopped.
Work expenses related to your
disability — If you work, you may
have to pay for certain items and
services for which people without
disabilities don’t pay. For example,
because of your medical condition,
you may need to take a taxi to work
instead of public transportation; or
you may have to pay for counseling
services. We may be able to deduct
these expenses from your monthly
earnings before we decide if you’re
still eligible for benefits.
Students with disabilities — If
you’re under age 22, go to school, or
regularly attend a training program,
we don’t count some of your earnings.
In 2016, we don’t count up to $1,780
of your earnings a month (maximum
of $7,180 for 2016) when we calculate
your SSI benefit.
Next, we devote an entire section
to explain an important SSI work
incentive, the plan to achieve self-
support, or PASS, program.

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 Plan to achieve
self-support (PASS)
The purpose of a plan to achieve
self-support is to help you get items,
services, or skills you need to reach
your work goals. Your work goal
should reduce your dependence on SSI
or help you leave the Social Security
disability or SSI rolls. Any money you
use to help achieve your work goal
won’t count when we figure out how
your current income and resources
affect your benefits. For example, you
could set aside money to go to school
to get training for a job or to start a
business. You can also use money you
save for:
• Transportation to and from work;
• Child care;
• Attendant care;
• Employment services, such as job
coaching and resume writing;
• Supplies to start a business;
• Equipment and tools to do the
job; or
• Uniforms, special clothing, and
safety equipment.
How to set up a plan — The
plan must be in writing, and
Social Security must approve it.
To start, contact your local Social
Security office for an application
(Form SSA-545-BK). Then, follow the
steps below to set up your plan:
1. Decide what your specific work
goal is. For example, your work

12
 goal might be to get a job you
want, and that you think you’ll
be able to do, when you complete
your plan. We can refer you to a
vocational rehabilitation counselor
who can help you figure out your
work goal. Other third parties
can help you, too. You can also
set up a plan to cover the costs
of vocational services (including
testing, vocational services, and
business planning).
2. Indicate all the steps you need to
take to reach your goal and how long
you’ll need to complete each step.
3. Decide what items or services
you’ll need to reach your goal. Your
plan must show how an item or
service will help you reach your
goal. For example, if you want to
work in a restaurant, you may
need training to learn to cook. If
you want to become a computer
programmer, you may need a
college degree. If you want to start
your own business, you may need
to buy equipment.
4. Get several cost estimates for the
items and services you need. We’ll
only approve reasonably priced
items and services.
5. Find out how much money you’ll
have to set aside each month to
pay for these items and services. If
you’re setting aside income for your
plan, your SSI payment usually
will increase to help you meet your
living expenses. We can estimate

13
 what your new SSI amount will be
if we approve your plan.
6. Tell us how you’ll keep your plan’s
funds separate from any other
money you have. The easiest way
to do this is to open a separate bank
account for the money you save
under your plan.
7. Include a detailed business plan
with your application if you want
to start your own business. Your
business plan should explain:
• What type of business you want to
start (for example, a restaurant, a
print shop);
• Where you’ll set up your
business (for example, rent a store,
share space);
• Your hours of operation;
• Who your customers, suppliers, and
competitors will be;
• How you’ll advertise your product
or service;
• What items and services you’ll
need to start the business;
• What these items and services
will cost;
• How you’re going to pay for these
items and services; and
• Your expected earnings for the first
four years of the business.
NOTE: We encourage you to
talk to someone who can help you
write your business plan. This
could be someone from the Small
Business Administration, Service

14
 Corps of Retired Executives, a
vocational counselor, a local
banker, or anyone else familiar
with helping people to start a
business. You can include any
costs for this help in your plan.
8. Complete ALL the questions on
the Form SSA-545-BK, sign it, and
date it. Make sure that your correct
address and phone number are on
the form.
9. Take or mail your completed form
to your local Social Security office.
If you need help writing your plan,
your local Social Security office can
either help you or refer you to a local
organization that will help you.
Social Security must evaluate
your plan — After you submit your
application, a Social Security plan
expert will:
• Review the plan to make sure it’s
complete;
• Decide if your plan will give you a
good chance of reaching your goal;
• Decide if the expenses listed are
necessary to reach your goal and if
they’re reasonably priced;
• Decide if your plan needs any
changes and discuss them with
you; and
• Send you a letter to let you know if
we approve or deny your plan.
If we approve your plan, the expert
will contact you periodically to
make sure that you’re following your

15
 plan to reach your goal. Make sure
that you keep receipts for the items
and services you have bought under
the plan.
If we deny your plan, you may
appeal — If we don’t approve your
plan, you have a right to appeal the
decision. The letter you receive will
explain your appeal rights and tell
you how to file an appeal. You may
also present a new plan to us.
If we approve your plan, you can
make changes — If you later decide
to change your plan, you may do
so. However, you must get approval
from Social Security before you make
any changes. Tell us in writing what
changes you want to make, such
as a change in the money you set
aside each month or a change in the
expenses you’ll have. The expert will
review the changes and let you know
if we approve them. Tell us as soon as
possible about any changes that affect
your plan.
Let us know if you can’t complete
your plan — Contact your Social
Security office if you decide that you
can’t continue with your plan. The plan
expert may be able to help you make
some changes to your plan to reach
your goal. Or, you may write a new
plan with a new work goal.
If you don’t complete your plan, we’ll
start counting the income or resources
that you were setting aside for your
plan when we figure your monthly
SSI benefit. That means that your SSI

16
payment probably will go down or stop.
If you wait too long to tell us that you
stopped working on your plan, you
may get too much SSI. Then, you may
have to pay back the SSI payments you
received since you stopped working on
your plan. Remember, you may also
choose to write a new plan with a new
work goal.

How your earnings affect your

SSI payments
We base your SSI payments on
how much other income you have.
When your other income goes up,
your SSI payments usually go down.
So when you earn more than the SSI
limit, your payments will stop for
those months. But, your payments
will automatically start again for any
month your income drops to less than
the SSI limits. Tell us if your earnings
drop, or if you stop working.
If your only income is SSI, and
the money you make from your job,
we don’t count the first $85 of your
monthly earnings. Each month, we
reduce your SSI benefits 50 cents for
every dollar that you earn over $85.
Example: You work and earn
$1,000 in a month; and your only
income is your earnings and your SSI.

$1,000
-$85
$915 divided by 2 = $457.50

17
 We would take $457.50 from your
SSI payment.
You may be eligible for a plan to
achieve self-support that allows you
to use money and resources for a
specific work goal. These funds don’t
count when we figure out how your
current income and resources affect
your benefits.

What to report if you work and

receive SSI
If you get SSI, you must let us know
right away when:
• You start or stop work;
• Your duties, hours, or pay
change; or
• You start paying expenses for work
because of your disability.
You must report your monthly
earnings by:
• Calling us toll-free at
1-800-772-1213 or at our TTY
number, 1-800-325-0778, if you’re
deaf or hard of hearing, by the 6th
day of the next month; or
• Mailing or bringing your pay stubs
to your local Social Security office
by the 10th day of the next month.
You can find your local
office on our website at
[Link]. We’ll
give you a receipt to confirm your
report. Keep this receipt with all
your other important papers from
Social Security.

18
 Most people with telephone access
can report wages using our automated
wage reporting system. Reporting
monthly wages by phone saves you
paper, postage, and time, because you
don’t need to copy, fax, or mail wage
evidence to the local office. Contact
Social Security to enroll.
For more information on reporting
earnings, read Reporting Wages
When You Receive Supplemental
Security Income (SSI) (Publication
No. 05-10503).

How long your Medicaid

will continue
In general, your Medicaid coverage
will continue even after your SSI
payments stop, until your income
reaches a certain level. That level
varies with each state and reflects the
cost of health care in your state. We
can tell you the Medicaid level for
your state. If your health care costs
are higher than this level, however,
you can have more income and keep
your Medicaid. In most states, for
your Medicaid to continue, you must:
• Need it to be able to work;
• Be unable to afford similar medical
coverage without SSI;
• Still be disabled; and
• Meet all other requirements for
SSI eligibility.

19
 If you qualify for Medicaid under
these rules, we’ll review your case
periodically to see if you’re still
disabled or blind and still earning less
than your state’s allowable level.

20
Notes

21
 Notes

22
Notes

23
Social Security Administration
SSA Publication No. 05-10095
ICN 468625
Unit of Issue - HD (one hundred)
January 2016 (Recycle prior editions)

Produced and published at U.S. taxpayer expense

Printed on recycled paper