I’m 62, legally blind and can’t work. With $1.5M in savings, should I still apply for Social Security disability?

How to qualify for SSDI

Disability benefits begin five full months after your alleged onset date (AOD) — the date you became disabled. Your payment will start within the sixth month, but you may also be eligible for retroactive benefits, covering up to 12 months before your filing date. The amount you receive is based on your average lifetime earnings before your disability. In 2024, the maximum SSDI benefit is $3,822 per month, with an average of around $1,537.

To be eligible for SSDI, you must have paid into the system through payroll taxes. This means stay-at-home parents may not be eligible for SSDI, but there is another option: Supplemental Security Income (SSI). SSI provides basic financial assistance to people with disabilities who have limited income and resources.

Similar to retirement benefits, you need to earn credits to receive disability benefits. You can earn up to four credits per year (one credit for every $1,730 in wages per quarter). The number of credits for disability benefits depends on your age. For instance, if you’re under 24, you’ll need six credits in the three years before your AOD. If you’re 31 or older, you’ll need at least 20 credits over 10 years.

In addition, you must prove you have a medical condition that meets the SSA’s definition of a disability. This means you can’t perform substantial gainful activity (SGA) due to your medical condition, you can’t return to your previous work or adjust to other work and your condition is expected to last at least one year or result in death.

If you can still work and earn more than $1,550 per month (the SGA limit), you won’t qualify as disabled. However, you still work and earn less than that amount while receiving SSDI. Special rules apply for people who are blind or have low vision (vision in both eyes is 20/200 or worse). For example, legally blind people can earn up to $2,590 per month and still receive benefits.

Once you reach full retirement age, SSDI benefits will convert into retirement benefits.

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What happens when you retire?

This 62-year-old man is eligible for SSDI because he’s paid into the system throughout his working life. Since he’s legally blind, he can continue working while collecting SSDI as long as he earns less than $2,590 per month. He can do that until he reaches full retirement.

He might how claiming SSDI will affect his Social Security retirement benefits. When you reach full retirement age — between 66 and 67, depending on your birth year — your SSDI benefits automatically convert to retirement benefits.

There’s a “disability freeze” rule that applies if you’re legally blind and continue working without claiming disability benefits. If your earnings drop due to your disability, the SSA can exclude those lower-earning years from your retirement benefit calculation, potentially increasing your benefit.

It’s important to note that you can’t receive both retirement and disability benefits simultaneously. However, once your SSDI converts to retirement benefits, the amount will remain the same. The 62-year-old man can count on a stable benefit for life, supplemented by his $1.5 million in savings.