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Will workers’ compensation benefits impact SSDI?

On Behalf of | Dec 12, 2021 | Social Security Disability

If you receive Social Security Disability benefits due to an injury that happened while you were on the job, you likely also get benefits from workers’ compensation. When you get SSDI, you must report other income or money you receive, including workers’ compensation benefits.

According to the Social Security Administration, any benefits you get from workers’ compensation will impact the number of benefits you can get through SSDI.

Benefit reduction

Your workers’ compensation benefits may reduce your SSDI. It will depend on the combined total of the benefits. You cannot receive benefits greater than 80% of your average current earnings, which the SSA calculates from prior to your disability status.

The math

You will want to add up the benefits you get from SSDI and workers’ compensation. Compare that to the average earnings you made prior to having to leave work due to your disability. If the total is more than 80%, you will have to figure a reduction.

For example, if your average earnings are $2000 and you receive a combined total of $1800 in benefits, then you will have a reduction. You cannot make more than $1600, which is 80% of $2000.

The SSA will reduce your SSDI benefits by $200 to bring you down to the maximum of $1600.

You must report your workers’ compensation benefits to the SSA once you begin receiving them. You cannot withhold the information because it will reduce your SSDI benefits. If you withhold information, you could face sanctions in the future, including having to repay any benefit overpayments due to your failure to report.