Self-Employment Income

It has come to our attention that there is some confusion as to whether self-employment income constitutes work activity for the purpose of determining disability through the Social Security Administration. It does.

Being self-employed encompasses a growing percentage of the United States workforce. More workers are working from home and trying to develop home-based businesses and internet businesses. Please note that money you earn selling items on Ebay, Craigslist or Etsy can constitute work to the Social Security Administration if your income from these sales arises to a certain level.

Substantial gainful activity (“SGA”) is the performance of significant physical or mental tasks that are “productive” in nature, resulting in income that equals or exceeds an amount set annually by SSA. For non-blind individuals, the monthly SGA amount for 2015 is $1,090.00. The monthly SGA amount for statutorily blind individuals for 2015 is $1,820.00. If your self-employment earnings are over the monthly SGA limits set by the Social Security Administration, you will be precluded from Social Security Disability benefits.

Thus, it is crucial that you tell your lawyer about any self-employment or internet sales activity that you performing. If you do not report this type of income to the Social Security Administration, they can saddle you with an overpayment and ask you for all the disability benefits back. If the government thinks that you intentional misled them about your work activity, they can also prosecute you for fraud.

 Got a question about SSDI or SSI that you need us to answer? Please check out our website at www.westcoastdisability.com . We try to provide you with helpful information on our website that will allow you to successfully navigate the Social Security Disability process. Also, feel free to email me your questions at megan@westcoastdisability.com or call me at (800) 459-3017 x 103.