What is Substantial Gainful Activity?
Substantial gainful activity is work performed for pay above a certain earning level. If you are working and have earnings above a certain level, your social security disability claim cannot be approved regardless of the severity of your medical condition. The amount of monthly earnings that SSA considers depends on the nature of the person's disability. The SGA amount is higher for statutorily blind individuals, and less for non-blind individuals. The amount changes from year to year. See chart below.
Monthly substantial gainful activity amounts by disability type
| Year |
Blind |
Non-blind |
| 1975 |
$200 |
$200 |
| 1976 |
230 |
230 |
| 1977 |
240 |
240 |
| 1978 |
334 |
260 |
| 1979 |
375 |
280 |
| 1980 |
417 |
300 |
| 1981 |
459 |
300 |
| 1982 |
500 |
300 |
| 1983 |
550 |
300 |
| 1984 |
580 |
300 |
| 1985 |
610 |
300 |
| 1986 |
650 |
300 |
| 1987 |
680 |
300 |
| 1988 |
700 |
300 |
| 1989 |
740 |
300 |
|
| Year |
Blind |
Non-blind |
| 1990 |
$780 |
$500 |
| 1991 |
810 |
500 |
| 1992 |
850 |
500 |
| 1993 |
880 |
500 |
| 1994 |
930 |
500 |
| 1995 |
940 |
500 |
| 1996 |
960 |
500 |
| 1997 |
1,000 |
500 |
| 1998 |
1,050 |
500 |
| 1999 |
1,110 |
700a |
| 2000 |
1,170 |
700 |
| 2001 |
1,240 |
740 |
| 2002 |
1,300 |
780 |
| 2003 |
1,330 |
800 |
| 2004 |
1,350 |
810 |
|
| Year |
Blind |
Non-blind |
| 2005 |
$1,380 |
$830 |
| 2006 |
1,450 |
860 |
| 2007 |
1,500 |
900 |
| 2008 |
1,570 |
940 |
| 2009 |
1,640 |
980 |
| 2010 |
1,640 |
1,000 |
| 2011 |
1,640 |
1,000 |
| 2012 |
1,690 |
1,010 |
| 2013 |
1,740 |
1,040 |
| 2014 |
1,800 |
1,070 |
| 2015 |
1,820 |
1,090 |
| 2016 |
1,820 |
1,130 |
| 2017 |
1,950 |
1,170 |
|
| a $500 amount applied in the first half of 1999. |
As you can see, the monthly SGA amount for statutorily blind individuals for 2017 is $1950. For non-blind individuals, the monthly SGA amount is $1170. If you have earnings above this level, you cannot qualify for disability benefits because SSA will rule that you are working. This issue comes up time and time again when I speak with clients. It is a difficult thing to accept, but SSA will not even consider your medical impairments if you are earning above these limits. (see: https://www.ssa.gov/oact/cola/sga.html).If you have questions about how your earnings affect your claim for disability benefits, give me a call at 407-738-3718. I'll be happy to discuss whether you could potentially be eligible for disability benefits.
