Sometimes is not easy at all to get approval from Social Security and collect SSDI payments. Apparently, the older you are, the easier it will be to collect disability benefits.
However, if you have a qualifying disability, you cannot give up after a decision SSA made. According to Social Security, there are four opportunities for you to appeal a decision regarding SSDI benefits.
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Therefore, all SSDI beneficiaries aged between 18 to 60 should know about this process. What is more, you do not have to go through the four stages. Maybe you are lucky and you get approval in the first appeal level.
The first step is to request reconsideration
There are millions of Americans waiting for an SSDI decision. Delays are longer than 4 years ago which could cause a lot of financial difficulties and concern among applicants who cannot work.
Do not forget that to request reconsideration, you have a deadline. Once you miss the deadline, you may have to start all over again. From the day you receive the decision, you will have up to 60 days to appeal.
The request could be regarding a non-medical reconsideration or due to your disability. The best thing is that you can make your request online and you do not need any appointments.
Make sure you select the right reconsideration request to claim SSDI. Sending it by mail or by fax is possible. However, it may take much longer, can be lost or delayed by mail and it does not seem like a good idea. If you need some help, call +1 800-772-1213 or TTY +1 800-325-0778.
Three other SSDI appealing decisions Social Security offers
Secondly, if requesting reconsideration fails, have a go at a hearing with a judge. SSDI applicants can begin this process when they are not happy with the decision SSA made regarding the reconsideration.
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Once more, the deadline to apply for a hearing with a judge is 60 days. Two types of hearing are possible too for SSDI applicants. So, you can either request a disability hearing or a non-medical one.
The third step to appeal is the review of the hearing decision. In this case, this request will be dealt with by the Appeals Council if you do not like the decision made in the hearing with a judge.
The last and fourth step will be to file a federal district court action. For your information, this will be done through the U.S. District Court. Hopefully, you will not have to go that far and there is no need to appeal four times.