How To Get 7 Years Of Social Security Disability Benefits Protection

If you receive Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), going back to work can bring up mixed feelings. You want a paycheck and that feeling of being involved, but you're worried about losing the benefits you depend on. The good news? The Social Security Administration (SSA) created the Ticket To Work (TTW) Program, which protects your benefits for over seven years while you try working again.

With TTW, you can test jobs, build a career and keep your SSDI benefits, Medicare coverage and the option to return to full benefits if needed. It provides a safety net to get back to work.

A Program Built For Security

Ticket To Work is a free, voluntary program that helps people on SSDI and/or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) transition back to work. You can get help from an Employment Network (EN) like Allsup Employment Services (AES) that guides you through finding a job that fits your skills while making sure you keep your protections.

Think of TTW like a sturdy bridge that gives you time and tools to move toward financial stability. This bridge has four strong pillars that protect you in different ways.

Trial Work Period: Up To 12 Non-Consecutive Months

Your journey starts with the Trial Work Period (TWP)—a chance to try working without any risk to your benefits. You can work and earn as much as you want for up to nine trial work months within five years. Those months don't have to be consecutive. You might work three months, take a break, work two more, and so on.

After your ninth trial work month, the SSA gives you a 3-month “grace period” at the start of the Extended Period of Eligibility (EPE; see below). During this grace period, you still receive your full SSDI benefit checks even your earnings are above Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA). The grace period includes the first month after TWP ends in which you engage in SGA, and the next two months after that.

For 2025, any month you earn more than $1,160 counts as a trial work month (the SSA keeps a chart showing the current amount). Here's the key: you keep getting your full SSDI check every month you work during your TWP—no matter how much you earn.

This gives you breathing room to test your stamina, get used to working again, try different jobs and see how work affects your health without risking your benefits.

Extended Period Of Eligibility: 36 Months

After your TWP ends, you get 36 more months of protection called the Extended Period of Eligibility (EPE). During this time, your benefits can turn on and off based on monthly earnings.

If you make less than $1,620 per month in 2025 (or $2,700 if you're blind), you automatically get your SSDI benefits that month. If you earn more, benefits stop for that month but can restart the next month if your pay drops below the limit. The SSA calls this Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) and keeps a chart showing the current amount.

You don't reapply for SSDI during this period. The system automatically adjusts benefits based on your earnings. This is perfect for people with irregular work schedules due to disability, seasonal jobs or varying income.

Expedited Reinstatement: 60 Months

If you start earning enough that SSDI payments stop completely, you still have protection for five more years through Expedited Reinstatement (EXR). This benefit recognizes that people with disabilities sometimes can work for a while, but their condition may worsen later.

If you can't continue working because of your original disability or related conditions, you can get benefits restarted without a new application. You have 60 months after benefits end to request this. While Social Security reviews your case, you can get up to six months of provisional benefits immediately, including Medicare if you had it before.

This means if a setback in your health causes you to stop working, you won't face months without income waiting for a decision.

Medicare Continuation: 93 Months

Even if SSDI payments stop because you're earning a good income, Medicare Continuation keeps you covered for up to 93 months—over seven years—after your TWP ends. This includes hospital and medical insurance, plus prescription drug coverage.

For many people, Medicare can be the most valuable protection. Healthcare costs can add up quickly, especially for individuals managing chronic conditions requiring regular treatment, medications or specialized equipment. Having this coverage means you can focus on your career.

How These Protections Work Together

The TTW Program creates a sequence of safeguards covering you from your first day of work to years later. Each protection builds on the previous one:

• Trial Work Period: Up to 12 non-consecutive months of full benefits while working, regardless of earnings.
• Extended Period of Eligibility: 36 months where benefits restart automatically if earnings drop below SGA.
• Expedited Reinstatement: 60 months to return to benefits without reapplying.
• Medicare: 93 months of ongoing healthcare coverage.

These overlapping protections give you security for more than seven years, ensuring you aren’t left without protection during your transition back to work.

Your Role in Maximizing Protection

While TTW offers great safeguards, you play a key role in getting maximum benefit:

• Know the limits: Stay current with earning thresholds. Going over by even a dollar affects benefits.
• Report earnings promptly: Social Security needs to know about work and income immediately, so stay on top of reporting to them. Failing to report leads to overpayments you must repay and can interrupt benefits or Medicare.
• Get expert help: The rules are complex, and mistakes are costly. Employment Networks like Allsup Employment Services have experts who understand the details. We help plan your career path, provide job-search services, help you understand how to report income and ensure you use all available protections.

An Employment Network is your long-term service provider for managing the entire benefits-to-work transition.

Returning To Work With Allsup Employment Services

Allsup Employment Services (AES) is an SSA-authorized EN for TTW. We have over 10 years of experience helping thousands return to work successfully. We can help guide you through the SSDI work incentives on your return-to-work journey.

The Ticket To Work Program helps you protect your SSA disability benefits, and working with AES you can:

• Earn More. Make as much income as you choose during the Trial Work Period and protect your full SSDI benefits.
• Stress Less. Avoid medical disability reviews and the worry that comes with them.
• Keep Medicare. While working, you can keep Medicare for over seven years.
• Avoid Risk. If you stop working anytime within five years, your SSDI benefits can resume through a reinstatement process.
• Pay Nothing. As a Social Security-authorized Employment Network, our services are provided at no cost.

Choosing AES means working with an EN who’s focused on your goals and will work with you every step of the way.

Get started with no cost and no obligation.

You can reach Allsup Employment Services today by calling 866-540-5105 or requesting a call.