SSI

Those who are blind, “65 years of age or older,” or have a qualifying impairment and have little money or resources are eligible for monthly compensation from SSI. SSI is also available to blind or disabled “children.” The “Supplemental Security Income” (SSI) program is run by Social Security.

Because “certain states” contribute to the SSI payout, the SSI amount varies from state to state.

The “name, date of birth, mailing address, Social Security number, and phone number” of the applicant are the basic requirements for SSI applications. With an SSI online tool and a few simple details, you may also schedule an “appointment” to apply for SSI. Visit “ssa.gov/ssi/start.html” to come across it.

To get correct monthly SSI benefits, you need to report “changes” in your income from other sources as well as “your salary each month.” By the sixth day of the month after your payment, submit your monthly wage report. You also need to report your spouse’s salary if you cohabitate.

By the tenth day of the month, you can report any changes to your other income and “self-employment” only after the change.

For every time you fail to submit a change to SSI or “report the change more than ten days after the end of the month in which it occurred,” SSI may impose a penalty in lieu of overpayment, which could lower your SSI payment by $25 to $100.

Use the app or give a call to report; go to “ssa.gov/ssi/reporting/wages” for further information.

Medicaid and the “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program” (SNAP) benefits may also be available to individuals who receive SSI. Medicaid covers medical and hospital “expenses,” while SNAP assists with food costs.

SSI Eligibility -

One of the following conditions must be met in addition to “little or no income” and “little or no resources” in order to be eligible for SSI:

Be 65 years of age or older, OR
Be blind in part or completely, OR
Possess an illness/disablility that prevents you from working and is predicted to kill you or “last for at least a year.”

For more information, visit — “ssa.gov/ssi/text-eligibility-ussi.htm”.

You have little or no income -

Generally speaking, SSI is for citizens whose “monthly income” from employment does not exceed $1,971. Income is defined by SSI as money received, including “earnings, Social Security benefits, and pensions.” Food and housing can also be included in income. For couples and “when parents apply for children,” the income ceiling rises.

Generally speaking, the following items don’t count against your income limit: property tax refunds or rent rebates; state SSI supplement payments; food stamps from the “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program” (SNAP); “Temporary Assistance for Needy Families” (TANF); Section 8 housing vouchers; specific costs for blind and disabled individuals; etc.

For more details, visit — “ssa.gov/ssi/eligibility”.

You have little or no resources -

Bank account funds and “automobiles” are common resources. Your available resources should not “exceed” $2,000 for single people and $3,000 for married couples. These figures “rise” by $2,000 in the event that you are a parent applying for a child.

Resources include whatever you extra own that may be converted into currency and used for housing or food, such as “cash, stocks, mutual funds, US savings bonds, life insurance, deemed assets, and so on.”

Generally speaking, the following items don’t count toward your resource limit: one vehicle per household, your “house and the land” it’s on as long as you reside there, the majority of household items and personal items, “property” you are unable to sell or utilize, etc.

You are 65 or older, or you have a disability -

In addition, you must demonstrate that your monthly income from employment in the “application” month is less than $1,550 if you have a disability. For citizens 65 years of age or older to get “SSI,” they do not need to be disabled.

You must have “condition/disability” if you’re 64 years of age or younger that:

impacts your capacity to “work” for a minimum of a year, OR
will cause death, OR
severely restricts day-to-day activities (for kids with special needs).

Impact on work refers to the incapacity to engage in any “Substantial Gainful Activity” (SGA).

If you are younger than eighteen (18) and have a medically determinable “physical or mental” disability (including an emotional or learning difficulties), SSI may classify for “disability” on situation that:

marks significant and severe functional difficulties, AND
can be anticipated to cause death, OR
has persisted or is anticipated to persist “continuously” for a minimum of 12 months.

Identifying illnesses and other medical problems that, by definition, satisfy Social Security’s requirements for disability benefits can be done rapidly with “Compassionate Allowances” (CAL).

SSI Payment -

For 2024, there is a “single,” countrywide basic monthly SSI payment. $943 for an individual and $1,415 for a pair. Not everyone receives the “same” payment. If you reside in a “state” that increases the federal SSI payout, you might receive extra. If you or your family earns money from other sources, you can get “less.”

In general, the more “countable income” you have, the lesser benefit will be. SSI deducts roughly $1 from your payout for every $2 you make from “employment.” A job is considered employment, as is self-employment or “any other activity” that brings in money.

SSI deducts roughly $1 from your payout for every $1 you get from “non-work” sources. Pensions, unemployment benefits, and “disability benefits” are examples of non-work sources.

A “state supplement” is an additional payment that state governments provide to aid with housing and food expenses. Payment of this kind won’t lower your SSI.

Depending on their “own” income or their parents’ income, SSI payment of children living with their parents may be reduced. Further in case of stepparents, as long as they reside in the house, their resources and income are taken into account.

For more information, visit — “ssa.gov/ssi/amount”.

If you pay for your own food and housing, you can also receive the “maximum” amount if you reside in someone else’s home. Your SSI payment could be lowered by up to 1/3rd of the federal benefit rate if you reside in someone else’s home and either don’t pay for food and shelter or “just pay a portion of it.” At present, 1/3rd means up to $334.33.

To learn more, refer to “ssa.gov/ssi/spotlights/spot-living-arrangements.htm”.

The amount of money or item you get does not count as income and does not lower your SSI benefit, if you sign into a “legitimate lending/loan agreement.” Further, any money you borrow that you do not use that month will be applied to your SSI “resource limit.”

Social Security vs SSI -

Both programs are run by SSA. Many individuals who qualify for SSI may also be eligible for “Social Security” benefits. Actually, applying for SSI is the “same” as applying for Social Security payments. Social Security and SSI, however, “differ” significantly in a number of areas.

Social Security	SSI
Entitlement program	Needs-based program
Based on prior work and paid Social Security taxes	Not based on prior work
Paid from the Social Security Trust Funds	Paid from general funds of the U.S. Treasury
No income limit	Limited income
No resource limit	Limited resources
Medicare assistance	Medicaid assistance
Benefits are NOT impacted by other income	Benefits MAY be impacted by other income
Benefits are determined by average lifetime earnings	Benefits are determined by state and federal laws
Benefits are unaffected by where you reside or “who you live with”	are affected
Offers benefits to qualified family members	No family benefits

Your Responsibilities -

You have to inform SSA/SSI of when:

you alter your mailing address or “relocate”;
the income or wages of “you, your partner, or your parents (if you are a child)” have changed;
someone arrived at or left your family;
the resources “you, your partner, or your parents (if you are a child)” own have changed;
you’ve gone back to work, or “your health has improved and you may resume work”;
someone in your household passes away;
you receive “financial assistance” from friends or family to cover living expenses;
you alter your name;
you enter into “matrimony” (including same-sex partnerships), divorce, or separation;
you go into or out of a “premises” (such a jail, prison, nursing home, or hospital);
you gain access to additional benefits or payments;
you are the subject of a pending crime or arrest warrant for escape/evading police “custody, arrest or imprisonment”;
you depart from or arrive back in the US;
the status of your “immigration” has changed;
you are under 22 and your school attendance has changed;
you receive SSI due to a “disability or blindness” and your condition improves;
if the income of your sponsor changes while you are an “immigrant” under sponsorship; and
you are unable to attend a “scheduled appointment” with the SSA/SSI office.

If you disagree with the SSA’s decision about your eligibility for or “amount of SSI,” you have the right to appeal most of SSA decisions. In addition, you ought to notify Social Security if you find yourself unable to “handle” your finances/funds.

Call 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778) for additional information, or get in touch with your neighborhood Social Security office.

SSI for non-citizens -

In accordance with the provisions of the non-citizen statutes that came into force on “August 22, 1996,” a non-citizen (often referred to as an “alien” for immigration purposes) may be eligible for SSI.

Starting on “August 22, 1996,” the majority of non-citizens have to fulfill two conditions in order to be considered for SSI: they have to fall under one of the ‘qualified alien’ categories and “meet one of the ‘qualified alien’ conditions.”

For SSI eligibility, a noncitizen must also “fulfill” all other requirements, such as the resource and income limits.

Go to “ssa.gov/ssi/spotlights/spot-non-citizens.htm” for additional information.

Link to official SSI page: https://www.ssa.gov/ssi

That’s all friends.

SSI