How to Restore Disability Benefits

social security benefits application form

Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income beneficiaries who stopped receiving benefits may have them restored through expedited reinstatement. The Social Security Administration may stop people’s benefits for any number of reasons, including improved medical condition or earnings above the substantial gainful activity limit. When benefits are terminated under certain conditions, however, and claimants find themselves in need of SSDI or SSI assistance, Expedited Reinstatement (EXR) may provide temporary benefits while the SSA determines eligibility.

What is Expedited Reinstatement?

Expedited reinstatement allows people who were previously approved for SSDI or SSI to have their benefits restored. People who have their benefits restored through expedited reinstatement are not required to complete a new application. Further, they may receive provisional benefits for up to six months while the SSA’s Disability Determination Services decides whether they can get benefits again.

Eligibility for Expedited Reinstatement

To qualify for expedited reinstatement, SSDI and SSI beneficiaries must meet certain criteria. Only claimants whose benefits were stopped based on work earnings are eligible for this accelerated restoration process. Additionally, to be eligible for expedited reinstatement, applicants must suffer from the same impairment that originally qualified them for benefits or have a related disabling condition and be unable to work or otherwise perform substantial gainful activity as a result.

Applying for Expedited Reinstatement

When filing for expedited reinstatement, people must submit a completed request to reinstate benefits, a work activity report, a continuing disability report and an authorization to release medical records. Social Security uses the information from these forms to determine whether claimants are still disabled and to gather details about their work history since they stopped receiving SSDI or SSI benefits. DDS will review the submitted documents and information to decide if applicants meet the disability standards. In some cases, DDS may request expedited reinstatement applicants to attend a consultative exam if agents cannot reach a decision based on their medical records alone. To receive expedited reinstatement, people must make their requests within five years of the month in which their SSDI or SSI benefits stopped.

If the SSA approves their applications to have their benefits restored, beneficiaries will begin receiving their regular monthly SSDI or SSI payments. Should their applications get denied for some reason, applicants do not typically have to pay back any of the provisional benefits they received during the decision process.

Categories:
Social Security Disability

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