It might be common sense for some to know that you can’t claim to be unable to do something if at that time you are actually doing the thing you are claiming you can’t do, but it happens all the time in the Social Security disability process.
We have potential clients who want us to assist them with a disability claim, but they indicate they are working fulltime and plan on continuing to work fulltime while a claim is processed. This is a not starter because Social Security will not consider a claim for disability benefits for someone who is maintaining fulltime gainful employment.
Social Security rules state that anyone who earns $1,170 in gross income and more per month from work-related activities is considered to be gainfully employed and not entitled to Social Security disability benefits no matter what sort of medical conditions they may suffer from.
We have potential clients who contact us and say it is difficult to work fulltime and they want to file a claim, but cannot afford to stop working or reduce their hours. Although it can be extremely difficult to maintain gainful employment, as long as someone is doing this they are not entitled to Social Security benefits no matter how difficult it would be. When we have a potential client or a current client who explains that they need to work fulltime to make ends meet, we completely understand, but our hands are tied when it comes to filing a disability claim.
The vast majority of our clients end up filing a disability claim after their impairments become so severe that they are unable to maintain fulltime work. Many of these clients end up in financial distress due to the lack of income, but those are Social Security’s rules and there is no way to get around them.
