When a person files a claim for disability benefits with the Social Security Administration, they will be asked, \u201cWhat is the Alleged Onset Date of your disability?\u201d I like to explain to my clients that it is more of a legal term than a medical one. What Social Security is really asking is, \u201cWhen did you need to stop working full-time due to your disabling medical condition(s)?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In Title II SSDI disability claims and Title XVI SSI adult disability claims, the alleged onset date (AOD) is always the date the claimant alleges they became unable to work because of their medical condition, whether or not that date appears to be appropriate or in line with the evidence. For the Social Security Administration\u2019s more formal definition of \u201cAOD,\u201d click here:\u00a0Alleged Onset Date<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, let\u2019s say that John started having back pain on January 1, 2019. He worked full-time through the pain for several years until January 1, 2021, when he had to stop work entirely due to debilitating back pain. When asked, \u201cWhat is the Alleged Onset Date of your disability?\u201d John will logically think and say, \u201cJanuary 1, 2019.\u201d After all, that is when his back pain started. However, for purposes of his Social Security disability claim, his Alleged Onset Date is more appropriate as January 1, 2021, because this is the date he stopped work due to his condition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With Social Security Disability Insurance<\/a> (SSDI), you can receive retroactive pay as far back as 12 months before the date you apply for benefits. Of course, to receive retroactive benefits before the application date, you must be found disabled before the application date. To obtain a full 12 months in backpay benefits, you must establish that you became disabled at least 17 months before the date you applied. That\u2019s because there is a five-month waiting period after the onset of disability, during which benefits are not paid or owed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n[Note: There is no retroactive pay for Supplemental Security Income benefits (SSI). If approved for SSI, you receive benefits as of the first month after your application.]\n\n\n\n Your disability onset date determines how much you will receive in past-due benefits, called \u201cback pay\u201d or \u201cpast-due\u201d benefits. For example, let\u2019s say that you applied for SSDI on December 1, 2022, and you alleged in your application that your disability began on September 1, 2022. The Social Security Administration (SSA) reviews your claim and issues a decision on December 1, 2023, approving you for benefits. If the Social Security Administration agreed with your onset date of September 1, 2022, you would qualify for backpay benefits from February 1, 2023, to the present (five months after your AOD of September 1, 2022).<\/p>\n\n\n\n On the other hand, let\u2019s assume that the Social Security Administration disagreed with your onset date and set February 1, 2023, as your \u201cestablished onset date\u201d of disability. You would qualify for less back pay and receive benefits only from July 1, 2023 (five months after your established onset date of February 1, 2023). This move by the SSA cut out several thousand dollars of your past-due benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhy Is My Alleged Onset Date Important?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n