Yes, Social Security disability benefits are retroactive.
If you are approved for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits, you may be eligible for retroactive payments. Retroactive payments of SSDI benefits are payments for the months where you were disabled and unable to work, but before you applied for SSDI benefits.
However, even though you may be eligible for retroactive benefits to the date you became disabled, it is important to remember that SSDI payments are not payable for the first five months of disability. Therefore, in order to receive retroactive SSDI benefits, you must prove that you were disabled at least five months prior to applying for SSDI benefits.
It is important to note that you can only receive up to twelve months of retroactive payments. This would mean in order to receive your full twelve months of retroactive payments, in order to account for the five-month waiting period, you must apply for disability 17 months or longer after the onset of your disability.
Retroactive payments are different from backpay benefits, which are available to claimants who apply for SSDI as well as Supplemental Security Income. Backpay benefits are payments that Social Security would have started to pay you right away if you were approved immediately after you applied.
If you have questions about retroactive benefits, contact a local experienced Social Security attorney today.