Working While on SSDI in Washington State

Many Social Security Disability Insurance recipients in Washington State worry that earning any income will immediately end their benefits. The reality is more nuanced. The Social Security Administration has established specific rules that allow SSDI recipients to test their ability to work without automatically losing benefits. Understanding these rules can mean the difference between successfully returning to work and unknowingly triggering an overpayment that takes years to resolve.

The Trial Work Period Explained

The SSA provides a Trial Work Period (TWP) that allows SSDI beneficiaries to test their capacity to work while continuing to receive full disability benefits. In 2025, any month in which you earn more than $1,110 gross counts as a trial work month. You are entitled to nine trial work months within a rolling 60-month window before the SSA evaluates whether your work constitutes Substantial Gainful Activity.

During the Trial Work Period, you can earn any amount without losing your SSDI check. However, you must report all work activity to the SSA promptly. Washington residents should submit work reports through their local SSA field office or via My Social Security online. Failing to report earnings on time is one of the most common reasons SSDI recipients face large overpayments.

Substantial Gainful Activity and What It Means

Once your nine trial work months are exhausted, the SSA applies the Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) standard to determine whether your benefits continue. For 2025, the SGA threshold is $1,620 per month for non-blind individuals and $2,700 per month for statutorily blind beneficiaries.

If your net monthly earnings consistently exceed the SGA limit, the SSA will generally find that you are no longer disabled and move to terminate benefits. However, gross income is not always the deciding figure. The SSA may deduct certain work-related expenses before applying the SGA test, including:

• Medications required to control your disabling condition so you can work
• Specialized transportation costs directly related to your disability
• Adaptive equipment or devices needed at your workplace
• Attendant care services necessary for you to perform job duties

These deductions are called Impairment-Related Work Expenses (IRWEs) and can significantly reduce your countable earnings for SGA purposes. Washington SSDI recipients who have disability-related job costs should document these expenses meticulously and report them to the SSA.

The Extended Period of Eligibility

After your Trial Work Period ends, you enter a 36-month Extended Period of Eligibility (EPE). During this window, your SSDI benefits are not automatically terminated the moment your earnings first exceed SGA. Instead, the SSA evaluates your earnings month by month. In any EPE month where your countable earnings fall below the SGA threshold, you remain entitled to receive your full SSDI check — even if you earned above SGA in prior months.

This provision gives Washington workers a meaningful safety net if their work is interrupted by their disabling condition. For example, if a chronic condition forces you to reduce your hours and drop below SGA during a flare-up, benefits can resume without requiring a new application. Once the 36-month EPE ends, a single month of SGA-level earnings will generally end benefits, making it critical to understand exactly when your EPE begins and expires.

Ticket to Work and Washington State Resources

The SSA's Ticket to Work program offers SSDI recipients added protection while attempting to re-enter the workforce. By assigning your Ticket to an approved Employment Network (EN) or to your state's vocational rehabilitation agency, you can suspend certain continuing disability reviews while you participate in the program. Washington State's Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) serves as an EN and can connect you with job placement assistance, skills training, and supported employment services tailored to your disabling condition.

Participation in Ticket to Work does not guarantee continued benefits indefinitely, but it does provide a structured pathway and added protections against medical continuing disability reviews while you demonstrate work activity. Washington residents can contact DVR offices in Seattle, Spokane, Tacoma, and other cities throughout the state to explore available services.

What Washington Workers Must Know Before Starting a Job

Before accepting employment, SSDI recipients in Washington should take several concrete steps to protect their benefits:

• Report immediately: Notify the SSA in writing as soon as you begin any work, even part-time or self-employment. Use your My Social Security account or contact the SSA at 1-800-772-1213.
• Track all earnings carefully: Keep pay stubs, invoices, and bank records organized. Self-employed individuals must document net profit, not just revenue, though special SSA rules apply to self-employment income calculations.
• Document IRWEs from day one: Save receipts for every disability-related work expense. The SSA will not automatically apply these deductions — you must request them and provide proof.
• Understand your Medicare protection: Even after SSDI cash benefits end due to earnings, most recipients retain Medicare coverage for at least 93 additional months under the Extended Medicare Period. This is a significant benefit and should factor into your return-to-work planning.
• Avoid informal or unreported work: The SSA has mechanisms to detect unreported earnings through IRS wage data matching. Underreported income can result in overpayment demands and, in serious cases, allegations of fraud.

Washington does not have a state-level disability supplement program that interacts directly with SSDI work rules, but residents receiving both SSDI and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) face a separate and more complex set of earnings rules for the SSI portion of their benefits. If you receive both programs, a disability attorney or benefits counselor can help you model how specific wage levels will affect each benefit stream before you accept a job offer.

Returning to work while on SSDI is achievable, but the rules are precise and unforgiving if misunderstood. An overpayment demand from the SSA can reach tens of thousands of dollars and can take years to resolve, even when the error was made in good faith. Proactive reporting, accurate recordkeeping, and professional guidance dramatically reduce that risk.

Need Help? If you have questions about your case, call or text 833-657-4812 for a free consultation with an experienced attorney.

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