Question about making money while on (or applying for) disability

Hopeless · 07-25-2014, 08:16 PM

Dear Angell,

Congrats on the book. That is fantastic. Will you share the title with us when it hits the market so we can read it?

I have no idea of how your book will impact your claim. I do suggest honesty as the best policy because you do NOT want to lose credibility. That is also an important factor in the decision making process. One must be credible and your honesty gives you that.

Even though there is a difference between "earned" income and income that is NOT earned, what if someone were to win a large prize or a substantial amount in a lottery?

If someone plays a scratch-off ticket and wins say $20,000, does that negate their claim? Although you "earned" the money by writing a book, it is a little bit similar to a one time windfall, and may or may not be considered substantial gainful employment. I can't say. It IS different than a winning lottery ticket in that you DID earn the money.

My point in posting was mainly to say congrats. My only suggestion relating to your claim is be honest and therefore credible.

Best wishes to you.

LIT LOVE · 07-25-2014, 08:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skyking

There are reasons why disability attorneys shy away from claimants who insist on holding part time employment, the primary being that it in large part shreds most claimants credibility. RFC's are important, they are even more important if they are a reflection of the outcome of a two day professional functional capacity evaluation, nonetheless, these things do become predictable based upon age and skilled worker factors. ts been my experience that most claimants under fifty must establish an RFC of less then sedentary, as opposed to those over fifty establishing one of sedentary. This has a huge impact on the outcome of most hearing level decisions.

The op should contact an attorney and inquire of them if they are interested in taking his claim, informing them of "everything" including his apparent offer for publication of a work he wrote in just thirty days time.

I would be very interested to hear the outcome of that consultation.

An ethical attorney would confirm it must be disclosed. This is not a gray area.

Working PT can also show SS a pattern that the applicant did everything in their ability to continue working. It's really about the details of why they can't continue the PT work. For those that quit FT work and take PT work or work that allows greater accommodations such as working from home, sometimes they then reach a point where they realize it doesn't make "financial sense" to continue working, or they have a further decrease of function, or a combo of the two--and they don't realize they've been documenting that they their are capable of lesser work at the SGA level and undermining a potential SSDI application.

In this case, the work has already been done, it just hasn't been disclosed yet.

I agree it would be in his best interest to hire an attorney or a non-attorney rep for the hearing. One strategy the OP should discuss with any prospective counsel, IMO, is if during the hearing the book disclosure becomes a major sticking point and a denial seems imminent, to consider suggesting a closed period award. He can reapply for benefits later on if a career in writing is unsustainable. (OP you would want to verify your last date of eligibility for SSDI.)

LIT LOVE · 07-25-2014, 08:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hopeless

Dear Angell,

Congrats on the book. That is fantastic. Will you share the title with us when it hits the market so we can read it?

I have no idea of how your book will impact your claim. I do suggest honesty as the best policy because you do NOT want to lose credibility. That is also an important factor in the decision making process. One must be credible and your honesty gives you that.

Even though there is a difference between "earned" income and income that is NOT earned, what if someone were to win a large prize or a substantial amount in a lottery?

If someone plays a scratch-off ticket and wins say $20,000, does that negate their claim? Although you "earned" the money by writing a book, it is a little bit similar to a one time windfall, and may or may not be considered substantial gainful employment. I can't say. It IS different than a winning lottery ticket in that you DID earn the money.

My point in posting was mainly to say congrats. My only suggestion relating to your claim is be honest and therefore credible.

Best wishes to you.

I believe the OP's application is for SSDI, not SSI. SSDI does not consider financial matters unrelated to work, whereas SSI has strict rules on income limits and other resources.

LIT LOVE · 07-25-2014, 08:50 PM

angell,

This link may be of some help:

http://www.disabilitysecrets.com/res...ess-and-still-

And this:
http://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/cfr20/404/404-1575.htm

fedup · 09-02-2014, 03:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by angell

Hi folks,

I am in the never ending process of the circus that is SSDI. I am waiting for a hearing date at this point and confident that I will be awarded SSDI.

Suddenly though, there is a possible issue. As I sat home, unable to work and barely able to care for myself - I decided that I needed to do something before depression became a serious factor. I decided to write. It wasn't steady - two or three hours at a time was about my limit, though there were days that I'd put in multiple sessions after a nap or rest. Twenty nine days later I stopped writing on page 355. I had written a novel.

No sense writing a novel and sticking it into a drawer I figured, so I sent it out to a publisher. Rather than the rejection letter I expected in four to six weeks, I got an e-mail back four days later complaining of the nights sleep I cost the him when he couldn't put it down. He wants it. There's a contract on the way and the advance is generous.

So, am I employed now? Is this considered work? When I went to the state to see if I could be retrained in the early stages of this disease, I asked about writing and they said that no, writing was 'art' not work. Ultimately, does this completely throw a wrench into disability?

It might , depending on how much they offer you to publish, then again how many hours you worked on writing it.

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