As a recipient of Social Security Disability Insurance, you may have firsthand knowledge of how long and complicated the approval process is. You may feel a tremendous sense of relief having received approval for benefits, and you may feel as if you are now in the clear.
The Motley Fool reports that you may be remiss to feel this way, though, because receiving approval for SSDI benefits does not mean you should are going to receive them for life. Instead, there are several things that may impact your continued eligibility for these benefits, among them:
1. Reaching the mandatory retirement age
Once you hit the mandatory age of retirement, instead of receiving SSDI checks, you start getting retirement ones. The amount you get in retirement benefits should not be much different than the amount you were getting for SSDI, so you may not need to change your budget much.
2. Having your disability or condition improve
Once the U.S. Social Security Administration approves you for benefits, you must undergo occasional checks to assess your continued eligibility for them. SSDI benefits are available only to those with the most severe and debilitating disabilities that should not get better with time. If yours does, you may become ineligible.
3. Earning your own income
If you want to test the waters of returning to work, you may be able to do so temporarily while still getting SSDI checks. If you return to work for longer than nine months, you typically lose benefits. You may, however, be able to get them for another three years during months where your income is low enough.
