Can I Reopen a Past Social Security Disability Denial in Wisconsin?
People get denied for Security Disability benefits all the time. And very often, they just drop it. They never appeal.
We see this at our disability law practice regularly.
This could be nagging you: Can I still reopen my prior Social Security Disability denial?
You can.
That doesn’t mean it’s a good idea to let a denial sit and not appeal right away. Doing that can easily harm your claim.
But Social Security does provide opportunities for a disability benefits applicant to reopen a denial and get another chance at economic support for a more secure life.
It’s even possible to get substantially more back benefits if you reopen your claim. Back benefits compensate you for time that you had a qualifying health impairment before your benefits were approved.
If your claim got delayed because you didn’t immediately appeal your denial, it means more time has passed, and more potential retroactive benefits have added up.
In this Geary Disability Law blog post, see how you can reopen a Social Security Disability claim even after you thought it was dead.
How to Reopen a Social Security Disability Denial
The process of reopening a disability denial is pretty straightforward.
You just need to file a new claim and list the same onset date (the date you first had health problems that prevented you from working) as you did on your previous claim.
These are the most common circumstances in which Social Security will allow you to revive your disability claim:
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- If it’s been 12 months or less since your first denial, you may be able to easily restart your claim. You can reopen a prior denial by filing a new claim within 12 months of the initial denial decision from Social Security. You can do this for any reason. At this point, the rules are lenient. So if you call my disability law firm and tell me you’ve been denied for benefits before, I’ll ask for the date of the prior denial. The timing makes a big difference in filing your fresh claim. For example, if a person called me on May 1, 2024, and said they were denied on initial determination on May 10, 2023, we needed to move fast to file a new claim before the rules got tougher.
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- If you have good cause, you could revive your claim for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits within 48 months of your initial determination. After more time has passed, you must provide good reasons for seeking to reopen your disability claim. Beyond 12 months, you’ll need to do more than simply re-file. You’ll need evidence and arguments for why they should give you another chance. Claims for this type of benefit—SSDI—are also called Title II claims. This is for people with significant work backgrounds and records of paying into the system.
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- If you have good cause, you could revive your claim for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits within 24 months of your initial determination. Again, this requires more arguments and evidence from you than if you tried to restore your claim before 12 months. SSI claims are also called Title XVI claims. SSI is for people with disabilities and limited financial means. It doesn’t require a work history.
How can you tell if you have “good cause” to reopen a denied disability claim after 12 months?
Every case is different. A disability attorney can help you evaluate your situation.
Good cause can include having new evidence to show Social Security, such as updates to your medical situation, or if you found an error in Social Security’s decision-making when they denied you before.
A skilled Social Security Disability lawyer knows how to analyze your case to look for such errors.
If you’re unable to work due to physical or mental limitations and would like to see if you could still qualify for Social Security Disability benefits after a denial, discuss it with a disability lawyer to find out if you have a valid claim.
We’ll need to know the dates of your prior denials to determine whether you’re eligible to reopen the prior case. If you no longer have the paperwork, you can get it again by calling Social Security.
Geary Disability Law has helped thousands of people in the Fox Valley and Northeast Wisconsin win disability benefits to stabilize their lives after health setbacks.
Written by Tim Geary.
Disclaimer: Blog entries are not intended to be a substitute for actual legal advice. It is important for a representative to understand the specific facts and circumstances of your case before they can provide you actual legal advice. If you have questions about your Social Security Disability benefits, please contact a qualified representative to discuss your case.
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