
Unemployment generally does not pose an obstacle to being approved for disability benefits. The Social Security Administration has two programs, Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income, paying benefits to people who are disabled and unable to work.
Although it does not prevent you from being approved for SSDI or SSI, unemployment-related issues may affect your eligibility unless you know how to identify them and what to do to avoid them. This article explains common issues they present when attempting to qualify disability benefits.
Unemployment And Qualifying For SSDI Benefits
To qualify for disability benefits through the SSDI program, you must have worked long enough and recently enough to satisfy the work requirements. The first requirement is working long enough, which is measured in work credits.
One work credit is earned for every $1,810 you earn during 2025 at jobs subject to payment of Social Security taxes on the earnings. The earnings per work credit amount changes annually. A worker has the ability to earn a maximum of four credits annually.
A person needs 40 work credits to qualify for Social Security retirement benefits. If you become disabled before full retirement age, you need credits based on your age at the onset of the disability. For example, a person younger than 24 needs six credits, but 20 credits are required for someone who becomes disabled at 31.
Unemployment could leave you short of the required work credits needed to have worked long enough, but not working also creates another potential issue. Some work credits required to be eligible for SSDI must be recently earned.
For example, a person younger than 24 needs six credits, but they must be earned in the three years ending when their disability began. The worker disabled at 31 needs 20 work credits to be eligible for SSDI, but a minimum of 20 must be earned during the 10 years immediately before the onset of their disability.
Another issue when you apply for or collect SSDI benefits is unemployment insurance benefits with rules requiring you to look for work and be physically able to accept an available job. This conflicts with SSDI rules requiring that you be totally and permanently disabled and unable to work.
Some states have rules prohibiting a person from collecting unemployment insurance benefits from them while also receiving benefits through SSDI. Avoid problems by seeking advice from a disability lawyer or professional disability advocate before applying for SSDI if you already receive or are considering applying for unemployment insurance benefits.
Option For Someone Without A Work History
If you have never been employed at jobs subject to payment of Social Security taxes on your earnings, your only option may be SSI because it does not have a work requirement for eligibility. When you apply for disability benefits, the Social Security Administration reviews your application to determine eligibility for SSDI and SSI, so you need not fill out two applications.
SSI Benefits And Unemployment
SSI differs from SSDI in not requiring a work history or work credits for eligibility. However, it has income and resource limits because you must demonstrate financial need to be approved for SSI benefits. You must have little or no income and resources valued at less than $2,000 for individuals and $3,000 for eligible couples.
Not having a job may help you avoid violating income limitations. However, if you collect unemployment insurance benefits, they must be reported as unearned income. The unemployment benefits may not be enough to make you ineligible for SSI benefits, but the amount paid minus $20 goes toward the reduction of your monthly SSI payment.
For example, the federal monthly SSI benefits for individuals in 2025 are $967. If you receive state unemployment insurance benefits of $800 a month, only $780 counts toward reducing your SSI payment to $187. The reduction continues for as long as the unemployment benefits continue.