SSDI approved in Sept - how long until first payment arrives? (NY state, child support concerns)
My brother-in-law just got approved for SSDI on September 17th (after fighting for almost 3 years!) but hasn't seen a dime yet. He's in New York and getting really anxious because he's been on temporary assistance through DSS for rent, but they're pressuring him about when the SSDI will start. He also has about $12,500 in back child support that he couldn't pay while disabled, and he's terrified they'll take his entire backpay when it arrives. The claims rep mentioned something about not taking all the past child support at once, but then got vague about details. Does anyone know the typical timeline for when payments actually begin after approval? And will they really take ALL his backpay for child support? He's barely hanging on financially and desperately needs to catch up on basic bills.
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Javier Morales
Congratulations on your brother-in-law's approval! Generally, the first regular SSDI payment arrives 1-2 months after approval, so he should see it by mid-November at the latest. For backpay, that can take an additional 1-3 months, especially if it's a large amount that requires manual processing. Regarding child support: SSA is required to withhold money for child support obligations, but there are limits. They typically won't take more than 65% of the backpay for child support, and the regular monthly garnishment is usually capped at around 50-65% depending on specific circumstances. He should receive written notice about the exact withholding amount before they take anything.
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Natasha Kuznetsova
•Thank you so much! He's been approved for about $1,875/month, so even if they take 65% of the regular payment, that would still leave him with something to live on. Do you know if they just automatically start withholding for child support or is there some kind of hearing first?
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Emma Anderson
they dont take ALL of it for child support. my cousin got SSDI last year and owed like 9000 in support and they took like half of his backpay. regular payments started like 6 weeks after approval for him
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Natasha Kuznetsova
•That's a relief to hear! Did your cousin have to do anything special with child support enforcement, or did SSA and child support just work it out between themselves?
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Malik Thompson
I'm an attorney who handles SSDI cases. Once approved, the payment timeline usually works like this in New York: - First regular monthly payment: Usually 30-60 days after approval - Backpay: Usually 60-90 days after approval, sometimes longer For child support, SSA follows the Income Withholding Order that's already in place. They won't take more than 65% of backpay for child support arrears. Your brother-in-law should contact the New York child support enforcement office immediately to discuss his situation and ensure they have his current information. They may be willing to negotiate the repayment amount. Also, he should inform his DSS caseworker about his SSDI approval right away. DSS will likely require reimbursement from his backpay for assistance provided during the period covered by his backpay.
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Natasha Kuznetsova
•Thank you for the detailed info! I didn't even think about DSS wanting money back from the backpay. I'll tell him to talk to his caseworker tomorrow. Between DSS repayment and child support, it sounds like the backpay might be mostly gone, but at least the monthly payments will be starting soon.
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Isabella Ferreira
My SSDI took forEVER to start!! Got approved in June and didnt see money till almost Halloween last year. SSA is SO SLOW with everything!!! 🤬
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CosmicVoyager
I went through something similar with my SSDI approval and child support arrears. The wait for that first payment is AWFUL! I remember checking my bank account every single day. For me, the first payment took about 7 weeks after approval. The child support thing was actually better than I feared. They took about 50% of my backpay for arrears, which still left me enough to catch up on some bills. For the monthly payments, they take about 40% of mine. One thing your brother-in-law should know - he can call the child support enforcement office directly and sometimes negotiate a payment plan for the arrears instead of them taking a huge chunk all at once. Not guaranteed, but worth trying.
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Natasha Kuznetsova
•That's so helpful to know! He's definitely checking his account constantly. I'll definitely suggest he try to negotiate with child support directly - even keeping an extra 10-15% of the backpay would make a huge difference right now.
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Ravi Kapoor
Trying to reach anyone at SSA to check on payment status is nearly impossible! I spent 3 weeks calling daily after my approval and kept getting disconnected. Finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through - they got me connected to an actual SSA agent in about 20 minutes who confirmed my payment was being processed. You can see how it works in their video: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU It was worth it to finally get answers about when my payment would arrive and exactly how much they were taking for my child support arrears. Saved me weeks of stress and uncertainty.
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Emma Anderson
•does that really work?? i tried calling ssa like 50 times last year and always got the busy signal or got disconnected
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Ravi Kapoor
•Yes, it absolutely worked for me. I was skeptical too, but after wasting hours on hold and getting disconnected day after day, I was desperate. They connected me to an SSA rep who pulled up my file and gave me exact dates for when my payments would start.
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Freya Nielsen
THEY TAKE EVERYTHING THEY CAN!!! The system is RIGGED against disabled parents!!! I got approved last year and they took 65% of my backpay AND my monthly checks for child support. I couldn't even pay my rent after waiting 2 YEARS for approval!!! And SSA doesn't care AT ALL!!! Your brother needs to talk to a lawyer ASAP about protecting his backpay!!!!!
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Javier Morales
•While I understand your frustration, this isn't accurate information. SSA doesn't decide how much to withhold for child support - they follow court orders and state guidelines. They can't take more than 65% in most cases, and many people have much lower withholding rates. Getting legal advice is always good, but there's no need to panic about them taking everything.
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Emma Anderson
wait is ur brother in law getting SSDI or SSI? u said SSI rep in ur post but talking about SSDI. they r different things with different rules
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Natasha Kuznetsova
•Sorry for the confusion - he's definitely getting SSDI based on his work history. I just accidentally wrote SSI when referring to the claims representative we spoke with. It's all the regular Social Security disability, not the needs-based SSI program.
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Malik Thompson
One important thing your brother-in-law should know: After receiving SSDI for 24 months, he'll automatically qualify for Medicare. This is true regardless of his age. The 24-month waiting period starts from his established disability onset date, not from his approval date. So if his disability onset date was 2 years ago, he might already qualify for Medicare. Also, regarding the DSS benefits - he needs to report his SSDI approval to them immediately (if he hasn't already). Failure to report can result in an overpayment situation that would create additional financial problems.
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Natasha Kuznetsova
•That's good to know about Medicare! His official onset date was 18 months ago, so he's still got a few months before Medicare kicks in. He did tell DSS about the approval right away, but they're being really pushy about when he'll start getting payments so they can stop helping with his rent. That's part of why he's so stressed about the timeline.
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Isabella Ferreira
My neighbor got approved for disability and it took like 6-7 weeks to get paid I think? But that was in Florida not NY so maybe different?
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