Social Security Disability Income (SSDI) recipients and persons who receive their retirement benefits from Supplemental Security Income (SSI) will not be entitled to the same payment. This is because SSDI recipients will be given a higher payment than those who get the SSI payment.
This means that SSDI beneficiaries will get a maximum payment of $3822 monthly, while SSI recipients will receive a maximum of $1415 for couples who both qualify.
What is the SSI payment?
SSI payments are a monthly payment that is handed out by the SSA of the United States government. This payment is reserved for individuals who have little or no income and therefore cannot cope with their living expenses. To support them, the SSA provides a monthly check of $943 for individuals and $1415 for couples.
The payment is aimed at disabled persons. Its main goal is to provide care due to their disability; they can no longer afford to take care of their living expenses. More than this, these individuals must also fall within these criteria.
- The individuals must have their assets valued at less than $2000.
- The married couple must have their assets valued at less than $3,000.
What is the SSDI payment?
The SSI payment is for welfare purposes, especially for individuals who are disabled and cannot work. The SSDI, on the other hand, is not for the same purpose. The SSDI payment of $3,822 is for individuals who have retired and can no longer work because they have passed the retirement age.
The maximum payment for SSDI is pegged at $3,822. This is applicable if the individual retires at age 65, which is the full retirement age. The payment can also be reduced or increased to $2,710 monthly or $4,873. If the individual retired early at age 62, they’d get $2,710, but if they pushed their retirement into age 70, they’d be paid $4,873.
SSI vs. SSDI payment
While both payments come from the SSA, they do not serve the same purpose and are not for the same audience. More than this, the difference between both also includes:
- SSI determination is usually based on the age or the disability of the recipient, but the SSDI payment is determined using the individual’s work credit and disability.
- Another distinction between the payments is that in many states, a recipient of SSI will qualify automatically for health care coverage through SSDI. However, the recipient of SSDI will qualify for the same program after 2 years of being paid disability benefits.
These factors influence how much each individual from this set of payments will receive monthly, especially as they are both for different purposes and require that recipients have certain criteria in place to get the benefits of the program given to them.
