Your date of filing is the date on which you actually file for Social Security Disability benefits. In some cases, this may differ from your Protected Filing Date, which is set at the date on which you first made your intent to file a claim for Social Security Disability benefits known to the Social Security Administration.
If you are filing for Social Security Disability benefits, you will need to meet eligibility requirements regarding how much time you have spent working over the past ten years. In most cases, you will need to have worked five out of the last ten years (this does vary somewhat for younger or older workers).
If you are filing for disability, you will need to meet requirements on your date of filing which involve the amount of other income you are receiving and any assets you own. In general, you may not own more than $2,000 in assets (with the exception of the house you live in and one vehicle) if you are single, or $3,000 in joint assets if you are married on your date of filing.
In most instances, you are best served by filing a Social Security Disability claim as soon as you begin to suspect that you may be disabled for more than a year, or that your disability is likely to be terminal. Even if you don’t want to start the process, you should consider filing intent to claim so that you will have a protected date of filing.
Once you have established a date of filing, even if you don’t go forward with your claim yet, you will have established the date at which your disability started, which can help you win Social Security Disability approval later. Having a date of filing established can also help you receive more back pay when your Social Security Disability benefits are approved.
