morning,
while waiting for an snswer re disabilty , i got a all from the SS office, they asked me questuons about the amount of money im making amd the number of hours im working ( apparemtly i was vague on my application) i told them i own a restaurant and if i dont go in and open the place doesnt stay alive, i dont take any money in salary or benefits, i pay my staff. i have stenosis, multiple herniated discs stemming from a auto accident last year, i explained i cant afford to take dr recommendation of multiple operations, cause i cant afford it and cant be away for the extended period of time it will take to recover, so im gutting it out. question is it a good sign for approvasl that they called me and were probing more ? ( its been 4 months sine i applied)
thanks for listening

Hi,

The call you received asking about your work doesn't necessarily mean that your claim for disability benefits is likely to be approved. The Social Security office is responsible for determining whether or not you meet the non-medical requirements for disability entitlement, such as having the required quarters of coverage. They must also establish that you are not currently doing work that would disqualify you from being approved for disability benefits. Generally, a person must not be working and earning an average of more than $1170 per month, which is referred to as substantial gainful activity (SGA), in order to be eligible for disability.

An SGA determination involving someone who is self-employed or owns a corporation can be quite complex. Social Security looks not only at the person's net profits if any, but also at the reasonable value of their work (https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/lnx/0410510010). If they decide that the person is doing substantial gainful work, their claim can be disallowed regardless of their health issues.

The medical determinations for Social Security disability claims are made by State agencies, called Disability Determination Services (DDS), that contract with the Social Security. My guess is that a worker at DDS was alerted to your work by something in your file and asked the Social Security office to make sure that you aren't performing SGA.

Best, Jerry