The Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program provides disability benefits to workers who cannot continue employment. However, you must have a minimum number of work credits to be approved for SSDI benefits. How many credits you need depends on your age. Here’s what you need to understand about work credits and how your work history translates to credits toward SSDI benefits.
What Are Social Security Work Credits?
Social Security work credits measure a person’s work history, ensuring they have contributed to the Social Security system and thus can benefit from it. A person who applies for Social Security Disability Insurance must have the minimum required work credits for their age to qualify for benefits. However, work credits do not determine the amount of a person’s Social Security benefit; instead, their average earnings during their working years determine the amount of their monthly benefits.
How Work Credits Are Earned
A person earns work credits when they earn income subject to Social Security taxes. Workers receive one work credit when they earn a specific amount of taxable income (as of 2025, $1,810). People can earn up to four credits per year.
Steps in Determining SSDI Eligibility
When applying for SSDI, the Social Security Administration first examines the applicant’s work history to ensure they meet the work credit requirements. Although the Administration maintains work credit records for individuals, they can submit documentation with their application to correct errors in the Administration’s records, such as proof of earnings taxed by Social Security. After confirming an applicant’s work qualifications, the Administration will forward the application to a state Disability Determination Services office to examine whether the applicant has a qualifying disability.
How Many Work Credits Do I Need to Qualify for Benefits?
A person who applies for SSDI must meet a recent work test and a durational test. The recent work test ensures that a person has recently worked before the onset of their disability. The durational test requires an applicant to have a minimum number of work credits to qualify for benefits. The applicable thresholds under each test depend on an applicant’s age when their disability began. Requirements under the recent work test include:
- Disability began before age 24 – An applicant must have earned at least six credits in the three years preceding the onset of disability
- Disability began between the ages of 24 and 30 – An applicant must have worked at least half the time between age 21 and the onset of disability. For example, an applicant who becomes disabled at 29 must have earned at least 16 credits in the past eight years.
- Disability began at age 31 or older – Applicants typically need at least 20 credits earned in the ten years preceding the onset of disability.
Requirements under the durational test include:
- Disability began before 28: At least 1.5 working years/six work credits
- Disability began at 30: At least two working years/eight work credits
- Disability began at 34: At least three working years/12 work credits
- Disability began at 38: At least four working years/16 work credits
- Disability began at 42: At least five working years/20 work credits
- Disability began at 44: At least 5.5 working years/22 work credits
- Disability began at 46: At least six working years/24 work credits
- Disability began at 48: At least 6.5 working years/26 work credits
- Disability began at 50: At least seven working years/28 work credits
- Disability began at 52: At least 7.5 working years/30 work credits
- Disability began at 54: At least eight working years/32 work credits
- Disability began at 56: At least 8.5 working years/34 work credits
- Disability began at 58: At least nine working years/36 work credits
- Disability began at 60: At least 9.5 working years/38 work credits
Work Credits for Self-Employed Individuals
Self-employed individuals also earn work credits if they pay self-employment taxes, which cover the employer and employee portions of Social Security and Medicare taxes. Self-employed workers may jeopardize their eligibility for SSDI benefits if they fail to pay self-employment taxes. Furthermore, self-employed workers may find getting their SSDI claim approved challenging if they do not have adequate documentation to prove they earned the required number of work credits under the recent work and durational tests.
Exceptions to Work Credits
Although the same work credit guidelines apply to workers age 31 and older, the Social Security Administration imposes less stringent requirements on younger workers, reflecting that such workers have spent less time in the workforce. People who become disabled may also qualify for benefits under other exceptions, such as:
- Disabled adult children – A person who becomes disabled before turning 22 may qualify for SSDI benefits based on their parents’ work record if their parent has died or receives SSDI or Social Security retirement benefits.
- Widows/widowers – A widow/widower age 50 or older who became disabled within seven years of their spouse’s death may use their spouse’s work record to qualify for SSDI.
- Blindness – A person disabled due to legal blindness does not need to meet the recent work test, only the durational test.
Disabled individuals can also pursue disability benefits under other programs that do not require work histories, such as the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program operated by the Social Security Administration or veterans’ disability benefits provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Where to Apply for Social Security Benefits
A person can apply for SSDI benefits online at the Social Security Administration’s website. Alternatively, an individual can call the Administration’s toll-free number to schedule an appointment to complete an application over the phone or in person at a local Social Security Administration office. Individuals can apply for SSDI while represented by an attorney.
Talk to an Experienced SSDI Attorney in Oklahoma City Today
If you’ve become disabled and unable to work, you might qualify for Social Security Disability Insurance. However, obtaining SSDI benefits will require you to have sufficient work credits. Contact Ryan Bisher Ryan & Simons today for a free, no-obligation consultation with an SSDI lawyer to learn more about your rights under the law and whether you are eligible for SSDI benefits.
This post was originally published in May 2019 and has been updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness in June 2025.
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