Extended Period of Eligibility
Case Studies
Case Study 1: Kai’s Full-Time Job and Termination Month
Kai has received SSDI since 2017. He starts working again in 2020. He uses his 9 TWP months in March to November 2020. He works part-time during every month of his EPE, December 2020 until November 2023. He never has countable earnings more than SGA during his EPE and gets his SSDI payment every month through his EPE. In December 2023, Kai has countable earnings of $1,400 per month. The 2023 SGA level is $1,470 per month. Kai continues to get his SSDI payments.
In March 2024, Kai is offered a full-time position starting in April. His countable earnings would be $1,800 per month. Kai knows that with this higher income he will no longer receive an SSDI payment, but he’s not sure when his last month will be.
Think about it. What needs to happen?
Kai reviews the rules as they apply to him. If Kai takes the job, he will have countable earnings more than the 2024 SGA level of $1,550 per month. He finished his EPE in November 2023. If Kai has countable earnings more than SGA, his SSDI will terminate. Kai did not use his Grace Period during his EPE, so April 2024 would be his Cessation month and his Termination month. He would get Grace Period payments for April, May, and June 2024. Kai would not get SSDI payments anymore starting in July 2024.
The takeaway
Kai can use his Grace Period to get paid for 3 more months, because he never had countable income more than the SGA level during his EPE. In addition, Kai can get SSDI back if he cannot work at more than the SGA level. (See Tool 5 for details.)