Work Incentives: The Details

updated March 5, 2020

Affordable Housing Earned Income Disregard (EID)

Many people with disabilities participate in housing programs that can make renting an apartment or purchasing a home more affordable. These programs include:

Public Housing
HOME Investment Partnerships Program
Section 8 Voucher Program
Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA)

If you have a disability and participate in one of these affordable housing programs and get a job, you may qualify for the Earned Income Disregard (EID).

The Earned Income Disregard (EID) allows your rent to stay the same when you start working. For the first 12 months after you start working, income from your job is not counted towards your rent, so the amount you pay in rent stays the same. In the second 12 months, your housing authority will only count half of your total work earnings towards rent.

Many, but not all, public and subsidized housing programs offer an Earned Income Disregard. If you are thinking about getting a job, talk to your housing provider to see if this work incentive is available.

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Glossary

1619(b)

A rule that lets people who stop getting Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits due to work income keep their Medical Assistance health coverage while earning up to $53,840 per year. 1619(b) also makes it easier to get SSI benefits started up again if your countable income goes below SSI's income limit. For 1619(b), you must continue to meet other SSI eligibility rules, such as the resource limit.

Note: If your earnings are over this limit and you have high medical expenses, you might still qualify for 1619(b). Ask your local Social Security office about the 1619(b) Individualized Earnings Threshold.

Asset Limit

The maximum amount of assets you're allowed to own while maintaining eligibility for a particular disability benefits program. Most benefits programs do not count everything you own, including the home you live in and one car you own. For Supplemental Security Income (SSI), the first $100,000 in an ABLE account is not counted as assets. For Medical Assistance, SNAP (formerly Food Support/Food Stamps), and some other programs, none of the money in an ABLE account is counted.

Also called a "resource limit."

Extended Period of Eligibility (EPE)

A three-year period (36 months) after your SSDI Trial Work Period ends, during which you can keep getting SSDI benefits in any month when you earn less than the Substantial Gainful Activity level ($1,260 in 2020; $2,110 if you're blind).

If you earn more than SGA, your SSDI benefits will be suspended. However, during the EPE, you are eligible to have your SSDI benefits restarted if your earnings drop below SGA.

Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA)

The amount of monthly earned income that shows a person is doing significant work according to Social Security. People who cannot earn more than SGA due to their disabilities may be considered disabled by Social Security and other agencies that use Social Security’s definition of disability.

In 2020, SGA is $1,260 per month ($2,110 for people who are blind).

SGA levels for previous years:

Year	Disabled, Non-blind	Blind
2019	$1,220	$2,040
2018	$1,180	$1,970
2017	$1,170	$1,950
2016	$1,130	$1,820
2015	$1,090	$1,820
2014	$1,070	$1,800
2013	$1,040	$1,740
2012	$1,010	$1,690
2011	$1,000	$1,640
2010	$1,000	$1,640

Social Security lists the SGA levels for earlier years.

Trial Work Period (TWP)

The Trial Work Period is the nine Trial Work months occurring within a five-year window when you can work and continue to get your full SSDI benefit. These work months can occur one right after the other or be spread out over time.

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