Many types of government benefits are earned or accrued benefits. Medicare, for example, is available to those who have an adequate work history after they reach retirement age. Social Security retirement benefits are also earned through work history and payroll contributions.
Occasionally, people who are not yet old enough to retire have medical challenges that prevent them from continuing to work. Those professionals may worry about continuing to support themselves and their families. They might be able to obtain Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits to replace their lost wages until they retire.
Those who have spent years working well-paid, full-time jobs often recognize that they are eligible for SSDI benefits. Others may be uncertain about their rights. Can those who only work part-time or part of the year in a seasonal profession still qualify for SSDI benefits?
Most people with recent work history can qualify
Work history is often not the most challenging determining factor when establishing SSDI benefit eligibility. Instead, it is frequently the severity or duration of the medical condition that may limit someone’s ability to qualify.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) has relatively basic requirements for employment history when people seek benefits. Most adult workers only need to have 40 credits on record with the SSA and 20 from the last decade to qualify for SSDI benefits.
People can earn up to four credits a year, and most professionals can easily acquire the maximum benefits available. A worker needs to earn $1,730 to acquire a single credit. That means that a part-time or seasonal worker only has to earn $6,920 to earn the maximum four credits available to them per year.
Even those who only work 10 hours a week at a minimum wage job can easily reach that target. Workers who worry about whether they have enough credits overall and enough recent credits may need help accessing Social Security records to validate that they have enough credits. They may also benefit from discussing their medical challenges with someone familiar with SSDI benefits. Typically, they need a condition that prevents them from working any job, not just their current position. They also need proof that the condition should last for a year or is terminal.
At the end of the day, understanding the rules that govern SSDI benefits can help most workers feel more confident about making a claim.