As anyone who has ever applied for Social Security understands, the process of receiving your payments can be difficult and time-consuming. Often, applicants will have to wait multiple months before their application is approved and their payments will begin. This delay in approval leads many to wonder if they’re eligible for a lump sum payment to make up for the delay in approval.
In many circumstances, people who are approved for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) will be eligible to receive back pay in a lump sum. Learn the circumstances where you may be eligible to receive a lump sum disability payment and how the payment rules differ between SSDI and SSI.
Lumps Sums for SSDI
If you’re approved for SSDI, you will usually receive back payments that go back to your initial application date. However, there is no limit on the total length of your back payments.
In order to determine the amount of your back payments, the Social Security Administration (SSA) will examine when your disability caused you to be unable to work. This is known as your disability onset date (EOD).
If you applied for SSDI after your EOD, then you might be eligible for up to a year of back payments so long as you have been disabled seventeen months before you applied. The reason for this is that you are not eligible for payments until five months after your EOD.
Should the SSA determine that you are eligible to receive SSDI back payments, these will always be given to you as a lump sum.
Lumps Sums for SSI
The rules for SSI back payments are different than those for SSDI. For example, SSI requires no five-month waiting period, which makes it easier to receive your benefits. Those applying for SSI are eligible to receive back payments starting from the first month after the filing date. This means that if you file for SSI and are approved four months later, you will be able to receive three months’ worth of back pay.
If you’re eligible to receive SSI payments, you will be paid in three installments instead of as a lump sum. You will receive these payments in six-month intervals. The reason for this is that your back payments cannot be more than three times the amount of your regular monthly payment. However, this restriction can be waived if you have any medical debt or expenses related to food, housing, and clothing.
Occasionally, SSI back payments will be given in a lump sum. The most common circumstance for an SSI lump sum disability payment is if you will die from your condition within a year of being approved. You may also receive a lump sum if you are no long eligible for SSI at the time of your approval.
If you are approved for both SSDI and SSI, you can receive back payments for both programs, but SSA will reduce these payments so that you don’t receive the full amount in the same month.
Make Sure You Get Your Deserved Disability Payment
It can take a few months to receive your back pay, so it’s important to be patient. However, if SSA is delaying giving you your deserved payments, then you might need legal assistance. Make sure that you receive your disability payment by consulting with The Law Offices of Dr. Bill LaTour.
We’ve been helping disabled individuals in the Greater Los Angeles area, the Inland Empire, and Orange County get the disability benefits they need for years. Call Dr. Bill LaTour and his team today at 800-803-5090 or fill out our online form to schedule a free consultation.
