Confused about SSDI 5-month waiting period - when do payments actually start?

congrats on getting approved! the 5 month waiting period starts from your onset date, not approval date. so if your onset date was june 2023, your benefits would start for november 2023 (counting june, july, aug, sept, oct as your waiting period). So your backpay would be from november 2023 to now minus attorney fees. hope that helps!

The 5-month waiting period is a mandatory period after your established onset date (EOD) during which you don't receive benefits, even though you're considered disabled. It's basically Social Security's way of ensuring your disability is long-term. Since your onset date was June 2023, your waiting period would be June-October 2023, with benefits starting November 2023. Your backpay should cover November 2023 through December 2025. Technically, your first payment might take 2-3 weeks to process after approval, but not another 5 months. And regarding backpay, if it exceeds $7,500, SSA typically distributes it in three installments, six months apart. Otherwise, you'll get it as a lump sum.

@profile8 You're absolutely right - thank you for the correction! I was mixing up SSI and SSDI requirements. For SSDI, backpay does come in one lump sum payment regardless of the amount. It's SSI that has the installment restrictions. This is a perfect example of why it's so important to be specific about which benefit program we're discussing!

THE 5 MONTH WAIT PERIOD IS THE BIGGEST SCAM!!! They make us wait 2+ years to get approved, then say "oh sorry, we're not paying for the first 5 months of your disability" even though you were just as disabled then!!! And why? Because they HOPE people will go back to work or DIE before getting benefits!!! The whole system is designed to DENY us what we've paid into our whole lives!!!!

I work as a claims specialist and can confirm what others have said - the 5 month waiting period begins with your established onset date and those first 5 months of disability are not payable. It's in Section 223 of the Social Security Act. I find it helpful to think of it like an insurance "deductible" period. Regarding your specific situation: if your EOD is June 2023, then June through October 2023 is your waiting period, and benefits would begin November 2023. Your first payment should arrive within 30-60 days of your approval notice. Backpay for SSDI comes as a single lump sum (unlike SSI which can be in installments). One important thing - if you were also approved for Medicare, there's a 24-month waiting period for that, which would start counting from when your SSDI benefits begin (so November 2023 in your case). You'd be eligible for Medicare in November 2025.

Yes, both your monthly payments and backpay will typically be deposited to the same account you provided during your application. If you need to verify or change your direct deposit information, you can do so through your my Social Security account online or by calling SSA directly.

I spent 6 months trying to get through to SSA about my backpay issues after approval. Was constantly disconnected or on hold for 3+ hours only to get disconnected. Finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an agent in under 10 minutes. They have a demo video at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU showing how it works. Saved me so much frustration when I was trying to sort out payment timing issues with my SSDI. Just sharing because I know how hard it is to get answers about payment timelines when you're anxiously waiting for backpay.

My situation was almost exactly like yours! Got approved in 2024 with onset date in 2022. The 5 month waiting period had already passed during my application process (like yours has). My back pay showed up about 3 weeks after approval letter, and regular monthly payments started the next month. What surprised me was my attorney got paid separately - they didn't take his fee out of my payment, SSA paid him directly. Made the whole process easier than I expected. Hope this helps!

also just to mention, your first regular monthly payment might not come the same time as backpay. mine took like a full month longer after backpay to start. something about payment cycles or whatever. just dont panic if you get backpay but not regular payment right away

Thanks everyone for all the helpful information! This has really cleared things up for me. So to summarize: 1) The 5-month waiting period was June-Oct 2023, 2) My backpay should cover Nov 2023-Dec 2025, 3) It should arrive as one lump sum in the next few weeks, 4) Regular monthly payments will start soon after or possibly a month later, and 5) SSA will pay my lawyer directly. This is SO much clearer than what my lawyer explained. I appreciate everyone taking the time to help!